The King's Key
by Lanilen
Summary: It's the year 2111, after the battle between Aizen and Soul Society reached a terrible ending. Earth is now a wasteland where no human could possibly hope to survive. Normal human, that is. Inside Vault 14, a vital piece of equipment has failed.
1. Preface: Vault 14

**Author's Preface:**

I thought about this Crossover when digging in my brain for ideas for the August rendition of Camp NaNoWriMo (which stands for National Novel Writing Month, where the challenge is to write a 50,000 word novel in one month). At the time, I left a partial first chapter here as a sort of "Pilot Episode," both as a reminder for myself to get back to it, and to check whether the somewhat outlandish but largely intriguing idea would be of much interest.

In that vein, thanks everyone who put this on Alert based on a mere 2,000 words of the first chapter, and even commented on it. It's been very encouraging :)

After I finished NaNo and started planning this, I realized there were several challenges I had to overcome. _Bleach_ and _Fallout_ are rather different universes, and thinking of ways of putting them together made me realize I'd have to do quite a bit of hard work to reconcile the large divergences.

In Fallout, the post-apocalyptic setting comes as a result of nuclear war. So far no problem, but there is much more to it. The pre-war world of Fallout was absolutely nuclear-crazy, in a "60s futuristic" kind of way, if you will. Everything was nuclear powered, from cars to batteries to oversized weaponry. While at first I thought merely spirit particles could replace radiation (and truth to be told, in the first Fallout the only place where one had to worry about radiation was The Glow), it wasn't enough.

So, there will be nukes, all-analog futuristic technology and all. The reason why is something I've been thinking of, but I can tie a few things together with it. I hope I can execute that well enough to avoid a wallbanger :)

That said, and as shown in the summary, the critical moment, trigger, Cataclysmic event, etc., was the Shinigami war with Aizen. It's just a matter of how things unfolded after that.

Second, the main character. There are a LOT of characters in Bleach, and I intend to use them pretty extensively (that is, I may use throwaway baddies or less-than-critical characters that are neither from the Fallout games nor from Bleach). But the theme of Fallout is the Lone Wanderer. In Fallout 1 and 3 you leave the Vault, where you have lived all your life. In Fallout 2 you leave your tucked away village, where, well, you have lived all your life. It is a voyage of discovery (the Hero's Journey per excellence), and thus I needed a character that was NOT familiar with the workings of the Shinigami, or the old world, and had lived inside the Vault all his life.

That left me with an Original Character. I couldn't use a Shinigami, and most of the human cast have at least some passing knowledge of what's going on (and know Rukia, and to a lesser extent several other Shinigami).

Of course, it is possible to do this differently. Place Ichigo and the gang in a Vault where they lived all their life and have them come to the outside world for the first time with no knowledge of what's going on. This has been done, and done well, by other fic writers doing crossovers of this kind, but I wanted an alternate continuity, where things HAVE happened the way we remember them from the Manga, until it all takes a left to Albuquerque.

Finally, the setting. I'll probably draw from Fallout 1 most, simply because it's my favourite of the series. That said, I'll probably take a few liberties to fit places to Seireitei or Hueco Mundo, as well as how some things work, etc. Doesn't mean I won't take things from the other games though. Only that I won't put the ruins of D.C. next to the ruins of L.A. or something like that. I'll be more liberal with particular characters tho.

Incidentally, I had this at a T rating at first, but I realized that the themes in Fallout (you know, Super-mutants eating humans, "chems", slavery, gory deaths) are not very T-friendly, so it's rated M for future unpleasantness.

That said, let's get this show started! I hope you will like it, thanks for reading!

* * *

><p><strong>3. Write a 500 word report detailing the early history of Vault 14.<strong>

Understanding the History of Vault 14 necessitates exploring the events that led to its creation. In the year 2010 of the Old History, year 0 by our modern calendar, the Spiritual War erupted between the _Hollow_ of Hueco Mundo and the _Shinigami_ of Soul Society. Conflict had always existed between these two worlds over the fate of the souls of normal humans inhabiting the World of the Living, but never to the scale that was experienced at the time.

Under the leadership of the traitorous Sōsuke Aizen, the armies of Hollow developed a new living weapon known as the _Arrancar_, powerful enough to allow them to stand vis-à-vis against the best Soul Society had to offer. As the conflict escalated, the Hollow army aimed for ultimate victory with the help of the Hōgyoku, a powerful spiritual weapon capable of blurring the line between the powers of the Hollow and those of the Shinigami. Using its powers, Aizen created the King's Key, the only tool capable of opening the gate to the Cosmic Keystone, also known as the King of Soul Society. As a direct result of this, both Hueco Mundo and Soul Society were destroyed, and all spiritual beings, as well as all spirit worlds, were thrown into the World of the Living, breaking the cycle of life.

This catastrophic event led to the destruction of all armies involved in the conflict, from the Zero Squad to the Arrancar, as well as the King of Soul Society, and turned the World of the Living into a wasteland.

Much has been speculated about the motivations of Sōsuke Aizen. Most modern theories sustain that he was moved by a simple wish of self-destruction, but due to his immense power only an event capable of devastating entire worlds could really bring forth his wish. A secondary theory, with some support from renowned scholars from the 20s, claims he wished absolute power to reshape the world to his liking, moved by traumatic events of his past. This latter theory, however, lacks support due to the inherent contradiction of how a man who, terrible as he may have been, was undoubtedly brilliant, could blunder badly enough to destroy everything he wanted to reshape, including himself.

During the initial stages of the wars, thirteen emergency shelters, called Vaults, were set up by the Shinigami of Soul Society as a precautionary measure, should the war escalate beyond their expectations. These thirteen vaults were, however, designed with Shinigami in mind, and were not made to accommodate humans.

An extra vault, Vault 14, was created and prepared by our Founding Father; an exile from Soul Society, Urahara Kisuke, made it with humans in mind. This is but a small vault, capable of accommodating an estimated maximum of 400 people while maintaining its self-sufficiency, which is tiny when compared to the population of Earth at the time, over six billion people. We are indeed quite lucky to have survived and lived in this Vault for the last hundred years.

The creation of the King's Key led to the destruction of Karakura Town, nowadays widely considered the pivotal element of the Spiritual War. Vault 14 citizens are descendants of the survivors from Karakura Town, who were protected during the Cataclysm by the Kurosaki Shinigami, Kurosaki Isshin and Kurosaki Ichigo. Their fates remain unknown, but it is accepted they probably perished during the Cataclysm. Their last stand is the starting day of our calendar, and we honor their memory during the New Year's celebrations.

If mankind survives long enough, the Cycle of Life will be restarted, and Soul Society, Hueco Mundo, and the Cosmic Keystone will be naturally restored.

* * *

><p>Yemon laid back on his chair and stretched his long arms. The sleeves of his black and yellow Shihakushō slid down to his shoulders, and the "14" written in yellow numbers on his back almost disappeared under the folds of his clothes as he arched backwards. His black hair fell back, revealing his long and narrow face, with high cheekbones, and his almond shaped brown eyes. He closed them as he stretched his muscles, relieved after the long sitting spell.<p>

He leaned forward again and looked at the screen of his computer terminal.

_Sigh, it's hard to condense it all down to 500 words. And it reads terrible to boot, I'm going to have to rewrite this._

"Kurosaki-kun!"

The door to the computer lab had opened and a short blonde girl wearing a Shihakushō much like his own walked in.

"Oh Maya, what's up?"

"What are you doing?" She asked cheerfully, smiling so widely her blue eyes nearly squinted shut.

"Just finishing the homework," he answered, pointing at the screen.

"Ara? Let me see, let me see!" She peeked over Yemon's shoulder and started reading. Slowly, her face lost some of its cheerfulness and her mouth made a small bummed pout. "Kurosaki-kun, you'll get in trouble again."

"What are you talking about?"

"You're still talking about spirits and all that superstition, you know Mayima-sensei gets mad when you do that in History class."

"He's an ignorant asshole," Yemon answered, irritated, "who are you going to believe, him or Gran-gran?"

"But," her face suddenly livened up as she muttered a wordless _'oh', _"speaking of, the Matron wants to see you!"

"Uh?" He looked at the girl, who merely nodded, "right, I'll drop by after I finish the homework."

"She said it was important..."

Yemon sighed.

"Okay..."

He saved his homework and switched the terminal off. Maya walked with him as they left, but they didn't have to go far. The Command Post of the Vault was on the same level as the computer lab. When they arrived, they found her sitting atop the post, talking with two technicians working on the terminals under it.

"Gran-gran?" Yemon called.

"Oh Yemon-kun," she said, and then looked at Maya, "thank you, Maya-chan."

"S-sure!" She replied, bowing and leaving. _Really, one phrase and she thanked me and dismissed me. She's so annoying sometimes!_

The old woman pressed a button on her console, and the seat started to descend down to ground level. She stood up with an uneasy step, helped by a cane but still full of dignity despite her great age.

_Kurosaki Karin, the very sister of Kurosaki Ichigo. I still can't believe she's over 100 years old._

"Come with me, Yemon. We have to talk."

Yemon was slightly surprised by the familiar tone she had used. Despite being his great grandmother, she was still the leader of the Vault, and usually acted the part. They walked to a nearby door and Karin punched the entry code. Yemon gulped.

_I've never been to Gran-gran's rooms._

Precious few had, it was rumored that the room held some of the oldest secrets Vault 14 had about the outside world, and they were only for the eyes of those in charge. Of course, Karin had been in charge for the last 100 years.

"Sit down dear."

The room was surprisingly Spartan. A comfortable looking bed, a desk embedded on the wall, her own computer terminal... and boxes, piles and piles of boxes. They sat on two chairs in front of the wall-embedded desk. Yemon noted there was a box on said desk too.

"During the night, the Spirit Particle Filter Chip failed."

Yemon nodded, but remained silent. Karin continued without changing her tone.

"The Vault is running on emergency supplies of water and air. Water will last a long time, as long as the recycling system works, but air will not. We have about five months worth of pure air, as long as our vegetation is healthy, much less if they die out. Without the filter, we cannot take air from the outside world without contaminating the Vault with a high concentration of spirit particles."

Yemon nodded again, but this time it was a gesture of acknowledgement. He knew about spirit particles; he had learned it from his family, because it was something one could no longer learn from the teachers. Current _theory_ was that the cataclysm had been global thermonuclear war.

_Superstition, they call it. Bah._

"Yemon-kun... I'm afraid someone has to go to the outside world and find a replacement chip."

Yemon's eyes opened wide.

"But... Gran-gran, the outside world! It's... Well, there's a reason why we're filtering the spirit particles, right? I mean, if I go out there I'll probably..."

Karin sighed, an elaborate gesture for someone so old and frail.

"That is why I have to ask you, dear. Nobody else in this Vault can go with you. Only you can step into the outside world. You are a Kurosaki."

"Will... Will I be okay?" Yemon asked, after a long pause. "Gran-gran, I'd do anything for everyone in the Vault, you know that."

She nodded.

"Can I go out there and actually find this chip before... Well, I don't know, before something horrible happens to me I suppose."

Karin raised her hand and reached for Yemon's.

"You will never be the same. I am sure of that. But you will live. You will change forever. You are a Kurosaki."

_Gran-gran is so hard to understand sometimes._

"O-okay I guess," Yemon sighed, and then gave an uneasy smile, "where do I go?"

Karin smiled, an old smile of memories past, and turning to the desk she opened the box. From it she produced a very old-looking map.

"This is a map of the outside world, before the Cataclysm. Here is us. Learn it well and do not mark our location on the map."

"Sure."

"The best place to start your search would be here," she continued, pointing at a mark on the map, "this is where Vault 12 appeared when Soul Society merged with the World of the Living. If a replacement for our spirit particle filtering system is to be found anywhere, it will be here."

"Why is that?" Yemon asked, curious, examining the wonderful – in his eyes – piece of paper.

"It was the division of Soul Society that held their research and development. Many secrets will be buried with them."

"I see. I never heard of that, I wish I could learn more before leaving; I get the feeling I'll be needing it."

Karin smiled, and pulled something else from the box. It was a small book.

"This is the diary of Urahara Kisuke himself. Everything I know from Soul Society, I learned from this book," she extended her arm, offering it to Yemon, "take it."

"Gran-gran!" He replied with an horrified expression, "I can't take something like that! It's too valuable!"

"Don't be silly. Take it. As you said, you will need the knowledge."

Yemon hesitated before taking it, handling with as much care as if it were a delicate crystal flower.

"There is something else I have for you, Yemon-kun. You have read the texts of the Quincy, have you not?"

"Yes, of course. Why?"

"Did you study them thoroughly?"

"Of course!"

"Really?"

"Gran-gran," he sighed, "yes, I really have. Ask me anything."

"That's okay," she responded, and reached into the box; she pulled a third object, a smaller box, "lend me your left hand."

Yemon extended his left arm without hesitation, though unsure of what Karin wanted. She took something from the small box, a chain of some sort with a pendant at the end. She lovingly wrapped it around Yemon's wrist, caressing the pendant gently between her index and her thumb once she was done.

Yemon recognized it. A star with five points, and a circle around the middle.

"Is that the Quincy...?"

"Yes," Karin replied with a simplicity that betrayed a torrent of emotions, "once you are in the outside world, I am sure it will help you. Take anything else you may need, but don't travel too heavy."

"Okay Gran-gran."

Karin put her right hand on Yemon's knee.

"You have no idea... how sorry I am... to have to send you out."

Yemon saw a single tear run down his Great Grandmother's cheek. He shook his head and smiled.

"I'll be back with our chip, Gran-gran. I promise!" He said standing up, and then leaned down to kiss Karin's forehead, "leave it to me! I'll go get ready and say goodbye to mom and dad."

As Yemon left the room, Karin's tears broke free, running down her face with precious abandon.

_Ichi-nii, this kid is so much like you._

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

_ Blackout1170_. Yemon is pronounced Yee-Maa-N: Y as in "you ( )" ; EH as in "ebb (EH.B)" ; M as in "me ( )" ; AA as in "odd (AA.D)" ; N as in "knee ( ). It means "Guardian of the Gate", which seemed appropriate :D


	2. War Never Changes

"War. War Never Changes."

- **Narrator**, _Fallout._

* * *

><p>Yemon left the Matron's office almost in a daze. He had understood the problem and what had to be done, but he hadn't quite realized yet what it all meant.<p>

_Go outside, and, um, look for that thing I guess._

When he entered the quarters he shared with his parents, he was surprised to see both of them there, his father sitting on his wheelchair and his mother standing next to him, with a hand on his shoulder. His father should have been down at the engineering level, and his mother at the infirmary.

"Mom? Dad? Why are you..."

He stopped talking before finishing the question, because their faces had answered it without a need for words. His father had a hard look on his face, his mother was on the verge of tears.

"Grandma told us already," his father said. He looked down at his crippled legs, and shook his head in an angry gesture. "Dammit, it should be me going out there, not you."

"Dad..."

"I ended up in this damn chair because of the accident, and the same accident burn most of our goddamn spare equipment. Damn it all!"

"Dad!" Yemon interrupted, "it's okay."

A sob interrupted both of them, and Yemon looked up to see his mother turning around to hide her face. His father reached up and took the hand she had placed on his shoulder with his.

"I'm sorry Seiji," she mumbled.

"Come on Kimiko, this is no way to see our son out," he said with a half grin, and pushed himself on his chair to the large table, "come on son, take a look."

Yemon followed, and saw there was a large assortment of items on the table, next to a single-strap backpack. Quite a few things he recognized too. Kimiko followed them, holding on to both men, as if unwilling to let either of them go.

"I got you some stuff from Engineering. Here's a portable water filter, hand-pumped and uses membrane filtering, so don't let it dry up, and there's a three liter canteen. When you're on the road, ration the water well."

"Okay."

"Here's my old Leatherman too. And..."

"Hey, that's..."

"Yes," he answered, "that's a revolver. Nambu M60, standard issue for the old Japan law enforcement. Only firearm in the Vault."

"Wow, really? Where did it come from?"

"Oh, from the time the Vault first closed, where else?"

"But... How old is this thing? It looks brand new!"

"Your father..." Kimiko struggled, but finally regained her voice, "your father rebuilt it for you."

"I'm an engineer, son. I got you some ammo too. Remember that it's a deadly weapon, you use it when you positively have to kill some son of a bitch that wants to kill you, hear me? Once you pull it out, you don't hesitate."

Yemon gulped. His out-of-the-vault adventure seemed more real with the weight of that gun in his hand. Yet he found it strangely comforting.

"You're not leaving until you learn to clean it and care for it properly. Out there nothing will be more important that this gun here. And if you can get a bigger one, so much the better."

"Why? I mean... Well, we don't really know what's out there, do we?"

"We know what's out there, son. War. War never changes."

Yemon looked at the gun once more before leaving it on the table. Then he noticed something else.

"Dad, what the heck is this?"

It was an oversized wrist accessory with a screen and several dials and gauges.

"That's a Pip-boy."

"Pip-boy?"

"Yeah. Come on, put it on."

Yemon managed to fit it on his left forearm, and it was so bulky that he had to readjust the chain of the Quincy pendant he was carrying. His parents exchanged a glance when they saw it, but Yemon missed it.

"What's this supposed to do?"

"First off, you turn it on here," Seiji answered, flicking a switch, and making the green light of the screen came to life, "it's got an automapper, clock, calendar, geiger and spiripar counter, health monitor, it can interface with computers, this boy can do everything. Heck, you can use it as a light if you want."

"Seriously?" He started flicking through the menus like a boy with a new Christmas toy. "Wow, this is so cool, it's like the terminals in the computer lab but on my wrist!"

"Well, you can play with it to see what it can do, but the most important," Seiji got his son's attention by grabbing the Pip-boy and forcing it to his face. He pointed at the geiger counter meter, "up there. If that thing goes tickity-tick, get your ass out of wherever you are."

"Uh, okay. I thought I wouldn't be able to avoid the spirit particles anyway, what's with that?"

"Don't know about that, I'm more worried about radiation."

Yemon lowered his arm and looked at his father.

"You think that's what happened?"

"Son, I don't doubt what Grandma says, and I believe that these spirit particles aren't just _another type of radiation that's got a fancy name_," he smirked knowingly, and Yemon smiled at the parody of his teacher that Seiji had just made, "but fact is, for what I see from the air we filter, at some point up there someone broke out the nukes, and I'm sure everything went to hell that day. But it's been a hundred years, and it's probably not too bad in most places, but be careful and keep your eyes on that counter. We don't know for sure how bad it'll be."

"Okay."

"I made you a first aid kit," Kimiko said, following his son's gaze, "everything you may need, lots bandages, antiseptic, wound closures, plaster, stitches... And that," she pointed at the plastic jar Yemon had taken from the pack, "that's the most potent broad spectrum antibiotic we have, you have enough for 300 doses in there."

"Wow," he said, putting everything back in the first aid kit, and looked at the spread on the table, "you know, this is great. I had no idea what I wanted to take with me, but looks like you've thought of everything already."

"That's your mother," Seiji grinned, "did you see that yet?"

Yemon looked at the cloth bag his father was pointing at, next to several packs of dried food. When he opened it, a smell of ginger and honey wafted from it.

"You've baked cookies?" He asked surprised.

"Those are hard biscuits. Old recipe for seamen, they'll last a long time. I know you prefer chocolate, but..."

"It's okay mom. Thanks!"

"Got you a change of clothes too, a light blanket, and some soap, and..."

"And that's all I'm letting her put in the pack," Seiji said, and laughed out loud, "you'd be dragging half the vault with you if I let her!"

Yemon was a fast learner, and it wasn't long before he could disassemble the revolver and put it together again without trouble. A small can of oil and a cloth was all he needed. Nonetheless, they both meticulously reviewed everything at a slow pace for the sake of sharing another moment with Kimiko. When they were finally done, and Yemon had packed everything, he looked at her in the eye and smiled.

"Mom, stop worrying, okay? I'll be back. I have to be back with the chip, remember?"

They made another stop before taking the lift to the Vault entrance.

"You're taking a bokken with you?" Seiji asked, surprised.

"Sure! You said not to pull the gun unless things got bad, and I don't have that much ammo, so I may as well take something else, and I know how to use these at least."

Yemon placed the bokken inside the folds of his sash, and adjusted the strap going across his chest and holding the pack on his back. On the opposite direction was the strap of the canteen, and under his clothes was the holstered revolver. When the door of the lift opened, they found that Karin was waiting for them in front of the vault door.

Meanwhile, the rest of the Vault were continuing their lives as if nothing was wrong.

"Yoshida-chan, please read your assignment to the class."

"Yes sensei," Maya replied.

She stood up and looked around. Yemon's desk was empty, she hadn't seen him since he went to speak with the Matron in the morning.

_Well, maybe it's for the best. But I'd have loved to see everyone's faces when he read that assignment of his._

"Yoshida-chan..."

"Ah, yes! Sorry sensei!"

They were interrupted by the sound of a distant alarm. It was an unfamiliar one, with slow up-pitching whines that seemed to serve more as a warning than as an alarm. A few moments later, there was a very disagreeable metallic grinding noise, and a slight tremor that could be felt through the whole vault.

"What the... Everyone, stay here, I'll go find out what's going- Yoshida!"

Maya ignored the teacher and rushed out of the classroom. Her heart was beating hard in her chest, and she had a dreadful, cold feeling in her stomach.

_I have a bad feeling... Kurosaki-kun..._

The lift was too slow. She rushed up the stairs as fast as her legs would carry her, cursing her own slowness. Halfway through her rush, the trembling stopped, which only spurred her with a new shot of energy. She rushed past the surprised guard at the Vault entrance room, and arrived in time to see the giant inner door of the vault start closing.

Yemon was standing on the other side. The _wrong_ side.

"Kurosaki-kun!" She shouted.

Everyone turned at her in surprise. Yemon looked at her while the door continued to close, then smiled, and raised his hand to wave farewell to her. He may have spoken, but she couldn't hear anything under the infernal grind of the giant multi-ton metallic door.

She ran towards it. It was too late, she knew it was too late, but she couldn't help it. The door slammed shut, grinding into place before she could reach it, and she pounded fruitlessly at it with her closed fists.

"Kurosaki-kun!"

The door remained unsympathetically silent. Maya turned towards the others, and fixed her eyes on Karin. She looked so maddeningly serene, as if nothing was wrong. As if she hadn't sent Yemon out of the vault. She felt a rush of anger and adrenalin overcome her, and ran towards the frail old woman, grabbing her rather roughly by her clothes.

"What the hell!"

Karin raised her hand slightly to stop the others from coming to her aid.

"What the hell! What have you... Why... What's going on here? Where is Kurosaki-kun going! What's going on!"

She felt a hand on her shoulder, and turned around to end face to face with Kimiko. She was smiling slightly, but her eyes weren't. For a moment they just looked at each other. Then, without prompt, Kimiko embraced the girl.

"It's okay, Maya-chan. He'll be back. It's okay..."

Yemon felt the air of the space between the two Vault doors moving as the filters started to push air to the outside, equalizing the pressure. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

_Here we go._

A few seconds of rumbling and the outside door opened. He was surprised to see it was really dark on the other side, the vault was apparently at the end of a cave of some sort. He pushed the goggles he was wearing up to his forehead, and let his eyes get used to the darkness first. After almost a minute, he took the first hesitant step out. A few more steps, and the vault door started closing behind him, blocking the only light source.

_Okay, there's some light at the end of the cave that way. I think._

He realized he had been holding his breath all that time when his chest started to struggle to keep the used air in. He let air slowly, and breathed in.

The air was moist and stale, with a slight smell of decay in the background.

_Well, what was I expecting? To choke or something?_

He flicked the Pip-boy on and checked the counter. Radiation levels were the same as background levels at the Vault. Unsurprising, even down at the Vault there was always some background, either the Radon from the concrete or the several radioactive sources from Engineering, which always leaked some no matter how careful they were.

Spirit particle levels, on the other hand, were higher than the vault. Yemon couldn't quite tell how much higher, the needle had been a solid zero down in the Vault, now it was above that, but low on the gauge.

His musings were interrupted by some scrapes around him. He flicked a switch on the Pip-boy and used the dim light to explore around.

There were several large rodents close to him, peering warily. He casually placed his right hand on his bokken.

_Bloody hell, look at the size of those rats! They must be a meter each!_


	3. Noone in Nowhereland

"Paths, paths, everywhere; a stamped-in network of paths spreading over the empty land, through long grass, through burnt grass, through thickets, down and up chilly ravines, up and down stony hills ablaze with heat; and a solitude, a solitude, nobody, not a hut."

- **Marlow**, _Heart of Darkness._

* * *

><p>Yemon looked at the rats for a few moments, standing very still and not taking his eyes from the rodents. There were four of them, and for the moment they looked rather disoriented by the light of the Pip-boy.<p>

Suddenly, one of them hissed and four pair of red eyes seemingly flickered to life, glowing maliciously as they looked at their next meal.

_What the hell?_

Things happened very quickly at first. The first one jumped at him, and he swatted it off the air with a fluid move with his bokken. There was a disagreeable cracking noise, and a few drops of blood flew from the point of impact.

There was no time for Yemon to congratulate himself, the other three were not far behind. He placed his left hand properly on the handle of the bokken, and took a second rat down with a well placed vertical downwards attack. At that moment he completely lost sight of the other two, as the shadows danced while he moved his arm.

He made two quick swipes with the bokken with a single hand as he stepped backwards, placing the light of the Pip-boy firmly in front of him. He barely managed to dodge one of the rats by diving under its jumping attack, but what had caught his eye was something else.

One of the rats he had hit, probably the first one, was oozing some strange white liquid from its cracked head. The liquid itself seemed almost alive, it started wrapping around the rat's face, and a few moments later its eyes lit up again in a red glow.

"What the fuck?"

Yemon swatted away one of the rats and rushed the white masked one. His attack crashed loudly on its head, but barely managed to make a dent on the white mask itself. The giant rat twitched and made a lunge at him, forcing him to dodge and make a second cracking attack on its back.

That attack did have an effect. He could swear it had broken the rat's spine in half, yet it turned around and looked ready to continue. The others were coming at him too.

_Crap, I have barely made it out the door, what the hell is with these things?_

He hit one of the rats awkwardly and kicked it towards the others, and while he had that small window, he turned and made a run for it.

_At least out here I'll have a better..._

"Augh! Shit!"

He covered his eyes and struggled to pull the protective goggles down over them, stumbling in a blind daze.

_'Years of living in the Vault will make eyes sensitive to the outside light.' Bloody hell, no kidding!_

He stumbled and nearly fell a couple of times, making wild swipes with the bokken, until the dark spots started to disappear from his sight, under the protective cover of the polarized goggles. The rats apparently hadn't followed, much to his relief.

"If rats are like that, I don't want to think what an elephant will look like! Damn..."

He took one last look at the cave and the rocky outcropping that hid his home, and in doing so caught for the first time a glimpse of the open sky. It was very clear, with only a few barely moving white clouds up high. As he looked around, he started to lose his balance and nearly fell backwards. He felt disoriented and, for a moment,somewhat exposed out in the open. He looked at the cave and comforting protectiveness its walls would afford him, were it not for the damnable giant rats from hell.

For a moment, he hesitated, even knowing they were in there, but finally shook his head and turned around.

"Well, nothing's gonna happen if I just... Stay... Bloody hell, there's freaking nothing out here."

He was surrounded by the wasteland. Vast, empty desert with nothing but a few poor mutated shrubs here and there, cracked dry soil, and dust. Dust everywhere. He took the map out and switched the Pip-boy to terrain view. The arrow indicating his direction was pointing south, and the automap had drawn a few scrabbles that seemed to follow the rocky outcroppings. His father had explained how the Pip-boy used sonar to draw the maps, but it still seemed like magic to him.

He erased the information on the mapper about the cave he had just left.

_Now I'm really a nobody in this whole wasteland._

With that cheery thought, he set forth towards the east. According to the paper map it'd be a good three or four days before he got there. He adjusted the pack and touched the canteen.

_I hope I can find some water somewhere._

Without any more thoughts, he looked at the horizon as he continued walking. The wasteland seemed to stay unchanged no matter how much he walked, empty and dry flat terrain. It was hotter than he had ever been in the vault, so bright he didn't think he'd ever be able to take the goggles off, and the dust, the damnable dust was everywhere. And above all, it took hours before he stopped looking at the Pip-boy's geiger counter every three steps.

So far he didn't feel any different. He started to hope that maybe things wouldn't be so bad, a few days travel to Vault 12, get something to repair the filter, and back home in no time.

His thoughts were interrupted when he caught a glimpse of movement on the horizon. Seemed to be a group of people walking along close to his own path. Unsure of what to do, he changed direction to approach carefully, but stopped a good distance away, hiding behind a small rocky outcrop.

"There must be twenty people at least," he mumbled, looking at the slow moving group, "it's some sort of... Caravan... Shit, are those two headed cows?"

The caravan continued its route at a slow pace. Yemon was so fixated on them he never noticed he had company until a sword was placed on his shoulder, the edge of the blade lightly touching his neck.

"Don't move a muscle."

_Shit._

"Good, now turn around very slowly, hands where I can see them."

Yemon obeyed, turning slowly to come face to face with his opponent. He was a head taller than him, muscular and heavily built, with long black hair and a square jawed face. He was wearing the black and white Shihakushō of a Shinigami, only it was very dusty and dirty, frayed at the hems.

"Uh... You're a Shinigami?" Yemon asked.

"Why are you so surprised?" The Shinigami examined Yemon carefully, looking him up and down. "Who the hell are you?"

"I... Uh... Kurosaki Yemon. It's a pleasure?"

The Shinigami seemed rather surprised at the answer. He shook his head and regained his darker expression.

"Why are you following us?"

"I'm sorry, I wasn't... Well, I was following just because I wasn't sure who you were. I was kinda trying to figure out what to do."

"How many of you are there?"

"J-Just me, sorry."

"Just... Shit kid, are you stupid or what?"

"Huh?"

The Shinigami looked past Yemon at the approaching caravan, and made a hand gesture. There was a loud whistle back, and he made another gesture, seemingly satisfied. After that, he looked at Yemon for several seconds.

"Take the goggles off."

"What?"

He pressed the sword closer on Yemon's neck.

"You heard me. Goggles off."

Yemon lifted the goggles and blinked under the glare of the Sun, completely unable to open them any more than the thinnest squint, and practically blinded. He felt the sword being taken away from his neck.

"Dammit, what the hell are you doing outside your Vault, kid?"

Yemon was so shocked that he tried to speak twice, yet didn't manage to articulate one word. The Shinigami pushed his goggles back down on his eyes, and after a few seconds, Yemon could see he had sheathed his Zanpakutō and was looking at him with a mix of worry and surprise.

"Well?" The Shinigami prompted him.

"Ah, we're in a bit of a fix, I'm looking for a replacement chip for our spirit particle filter. If I can't find one... Well," Yemon paused for a moment, and then looked at the Shinigami with curiosity, "so you know about my Vault? How?"

"Name's Takeda Toshio, former 9th Division of the Gotei 13. As to how I know, I was in a Vault too, you know, since this all went to hell;" he talked, and then suddenly looked past Yemon's shoulder at the approaching Caravan, "okay kid, whatever you're doing out there, however the hell you're still human, I don't care. Don't fucking tell me, don't tell anyone. Keep your mouth shut. Do your thing and get back into the Vault, you hear?"

"Uh... Sure. Thanks."

"Dammit kid, don't fucking thank me either. Come on, let's go."

They walked down the outcrop to meet with the Caravan, who seemed rather amused at seeing the Shinigami walk down guarding what looked like a rather harmless kid.

"Takeda, what's that?"

"I only caught this one, Maneki," Takeda answered the caravan driver, "just a bunch of useless wastelanders, nothing to worry about."

"Trying to justify your salary, I see."

"Hey, did _you_ spot them?"

"Right, right, the 9th Mercenaries have a reputation, I know," the driver smirked, and then turned to Yemon, "so kid, ya buying or selling? Take a look at the goods on the Brahmin, only the finest quality junk form the Wasteland! If you got the caps, I got the stuff!"

Yemon looked at the two-headed cows, laden with all sorts of goods and even more junk. One of them seemed to be carrying a whole bunch of gadgets. Yemon examined them, but didn't find anything particularly useful.

"Say, you don't happen to have a spirit particle filter chip, do you?"

"A what? What the hell's that?"

"Just what it sounds like, a chip to filter spirit particles out of the air."

Yemon stopped browsing through the junk on the Brahmin and looked at the driver. He realized he was looking like he thought Yemon had lost his mind, and behind him Takeda was practically mouthing _"what the fuck are you doing?"_

"Why would anyone want to do that?" The driver asked.

"Nevermind that, I think the kid's high on Jet," Takeda said, "let's just move on."

"Uh... Right, anyway, I have to go too," Yemon said, pointing with his thumb over his shoulder Eastwards.

"Going to Shady Sands I see, say hello to Aradesh for me," The driver answered, and then turned around, "hooooy! We're leaving!"

"I'll catch up after I make sure these wastelanders don't get any funny ideas," Takeda said, "I'll be right there."

"Sure, sure, can never be too cautious!"

After the caravan had made some distance, Takeda turned to Yemon with an obviously annoyed expression.

"What the fuck kid? What did I fucking tell you?"

"I'll have to ask if I want to know if someone knows where to find one, don't I? Speaking of which, do you know where to find one?"

"Why are you _explaining_ what the filter chip is dammit? If someone doesn't know, bloody move on, you explain in detail what it is, show everyone you're fully human, and before you know it someone's put two and two together and is looking for your Vault. Keep your mouth shut dammit!"

"O-okay, okay." Yemon hesitated.

"And no, I don't know where you can get one of those. Our Vaults didn't need that stuff."

"Figures... Can I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"You keep saying that I'm human, are there no humans out here or something?"

"Not outside, no," Takeda said, and as he looked at Yemon some of his annoyance appeared to morph into curiosity, "not many people can live out here and not become a spirit, eventually they all turn into one."

"You mean they die."

"No, I mean they turn into spirits. There's no Soul Society anymore kid, if you die, you die."

"Right," Yemon looked down, mumbling thoughtfully, "the circle of life, right."

"And now I have a caravan to guard, and you have to get your ass out of here. Next time, don't stalk people. If you want to approach them, then approach them. Better, if you want to avoid them, then avoid them. Keep your guard up and think we are all on edge out here, got it?"

"Ah! Sure, and thanks!"

Takeda shook his head and left chasing after the caravan. Yemon stood in place watching him disappear into the distance. After the tension was gone, he felt his legs wobble slightly, and walked back to the rocks to have a seat.

_Shit, that was too damn close. He could have cut my head off if he had wanted to._

As the sun seemed close to dip under the horizon, Yemon chose to stay there and spend the night hidden between the rocks, the only place he had come across that seemed to offer some shelter. He dug the blanket out of his bag, and finished his daily allowance of water to wash down some of the packed dried food. It was miserable fare compared to what he was used to in the Vault, but he had a feeling soon he'd be missing even that. With a solitary cookie, he settled down comfortably and took Urahara's diary out of the pack too.

_Let's see... 9th Division... This doesn't really read like a diary, it's all random notes on people. No index either... An, here we go._

As darkness approached, Yemon tried for the first time to take the goggles off, with good results under the softer light of dusk. Soon he was huddling under the blanket, reading about the 9th Division. Traditionally in charge of security inside Seireitei, they were also in charge of publishing the _Seireitei Communication._

Twenty whole pages of comments about each of the latest releases of the magazine. Yemon found the whole thing strangely fascinating, there were comments on people he had never heard of, articles he could make neither heads nor tails of, and yet he could hardly put the book down. He smirked at Urahara's comments about Yoruichi's appearances on the magazine, and the likely reaction of someone called Soi Fon.

Eventually, tiredness got the best of him, and he fell asleep curled up inside a crevasse with the diary on his lap. It was the soundest sleep he had ever had.

When morning came, he realized he'd have to think better of where to sleep when he opened his eyes and his whole back screamed in pain after the first stretch he tried.

"Note to self, don't sleep with a rock digging on your back. Bloody hell..."

The monotony of his second day of travel was broken when he came across some small settlement on his way to Vault 12. He assumed it was a settlement based on the tall wall surrounding some sort of constructions, which he could only see the tops off. As he approached the wall, he noticed a handful of kids playing on the sand next to the wall. He was too far to see what they were doing, they seemed to be chasing each other in some sort of tag game.

Suddenly, one of them let out a cry and pointed at something, and the others stopped everything to look in the direction he was pointing. When Yemon followed too, he was shocked by what he saw.

The biggest scorpion he had seen in his whole life was running towards the kids. They started screaming and rushing towards a crack in the wall, piling on top of each other as they all tried to fit through the small space at the same time.

_They're not going to make it!_

Without even thinking, Yemon grabbed his bokken and rushed towards the kids as well. As he pushed forward with all the speed he could muster, he realized he was not going to make it on time. He stopped, took his gun out, and after dropping the bokken on the ground, cocked it and carefully aimed with both hands.

_Stop trembling... Stop trembling, just squeeze the trigger, come on!_

The first shot nearly deafened him, he had never expected the gun to be so noisy, or to have such a kick. He had no idea where the shot had landed, but it didn't appear to have hit the scorpion. He steadied himself and, better prepared this time, fired a second one that hit its target. The impact sent the speeding scorpion tumbling, but after a few seconds it stood up again and, after spinning around as if unable to understand what had happened, continued its chase. Only two kids were still outside, but one of them appeared to be completely stuck inside the hole in the wall, much to the dismay of the other.

It had, however, been enough time for Yemon to get himself between the kids and the scorpion. He firmed his guard with his bokken and waited the beast out.

The scorpion stopped in front of Yemon and moved slowly sideways, making him spin slowly on the spot. Suddenly it lashed out with its tail, a blindingly fast attack that Yemon barely managed to dodge with a fast move and a hit of the bokken. He quickly took a step back when the scorpion snapped at him with one of the pincers, and rolled away to dodge the stinger a second time. On the third attack he countered with the bokken, blocking the stinger out of the way and hitting the scorpion in one of the eyes with a fluid thrusting move. As the scorpion reeled, Yemon pressed forward and cracked its left pincer with a well placed hit on the joint. Yemon jumped back when the scorpion attacked him again with the stinger, and for a moment he had the distinct impression they were looking at each other in the exact same way.

The scorpion twitched, and a white liquid started pouring out if its mouth. Yemon was surprised at first, but reacted quickly.

_Shit, not again! I have to kill that thing before it gets a mask!_

He rushed forward and, dodging the stinger by a hairsbreadth, lunged at the scorpion with the bokken. He plunged it on the scorpion's back, managing to crack the only joint running through the hardened carapace, and a moment later he had drawn his revolver and put four bullets into its brain.

After a few moments, it laid motionless on the ground. Yemon took a few steps back and sat down practically falling on his butt, breathing heavily.

"Bloody hell... I can't believe... I just did that... Oh right! Hey kids!" He turned towards the kids to see if any of them were still there, "are you... all... um..."

Instead of the children, there were several men looking at him. Two of them were carrying rifles, while the others were wielding spears and farming tools. They were all wearing dirty, ragged, patched-up kimonos, and they all looked as dirty and ragged as their own clothes.

"Um... hello?" Yemon said, not standing up.

The men were exchanging impressions but nobody was taking their eyes off him.

"You think he's a raider?"

"Doesn't seem like it."

"But he's dressed..."

"Lots of Shinigami around."

"He just beat a radscorpion with a stick."

"Are you stupid? He shot it!"

"Oi, who are you and what are you doing here stranger?" The leader of the group shouted.

_Okay, think fast now._

"Kurosaki Yemon, I'm just a wanderer. I'm just passing through, I don't mean you any harm. Is this Shady Sands?"

"What if it is?"

"No, nothing, just Maneki said to say hi to Aradesh if I dropped by."

Yemon tried to sound as nonchalant as possible, but all the while he was praying to he didn't know what for not having mixed up any of the names. After a few moments the leader lowered the rifle, and everyone else seemed to relax.

"Okay kid, you can come in. No funny business and don't go brandishing weapons around."

"Sure, that's fair enough," Yemon answered, relief obvious in his voice.

He stood up and dusted himself before following the men around the wall to the entrance of the settlement. When he entered, he was somewhat surprised by what he saw. The village consisted of merely a few very run-down houses made out of wood and bamboo. The state of disrepair was downright appalling, and the streets were littered with half-naked kids running around and chasing mangy dogs – and vice versa. There were a few Brahmin and some sickly looking crops at the very back.

"Tavern's over there," one of the men pointed, "and here's the doctor if you need patching up."

"Ah, I'm okay, thanks," Yemon replied, and his eyes fell on the well in the middle of the town, "say, is it okay if I fill up my canteen?"

"Suit yourself," the man answered before leaving towards the tavern.

Yemon walked to the well and, after a few seconds trying to figure out how it worked, he went at it with the manual pump. After a few pulls on the lever without a drop of water coming out, he gave up. Looking down the well he could see water, but the pump wasn't doing anything.

He opened his pack, took the tools he was carrying out, and started working on fixing it. When he had the whole thing halfway dismantled, he felt someone pulling at his sleeve, and when he turned he was somewhat surprised to see a kid looking at him.

"Hey kid, what's up?"

"H-Here!"

The kid extended his arm and offered Yemon a dried-up iguana on a stick. It took Yemon a few moments to realize it was one of the kids he had saved, but he had no idea what to do with that thing.

"Uh... What's this for?"

"It's food. Raiders eat food, right? When I grow up I'll be a raider too, because I get hungry, and mom says only raiders get hungry."

_What the..._

"Ah. Well, thanks, but-" he looked down at the kid, and seeing his face he realized he was actually somewhat scared of him, "do I look scary or something?" Yemon asked, smiling.

"N-No! No, no. Y-Yes, mom says raiders are scary, and to hide when the raiders come to get their food."

The kid looked down and shuffled his feet, but Yemon put his hand on his head and mussed his dirty hair some more than it was.

"Your mom is right, but you know, I'm not actually a raider," he clarified, and smiled at the kid again when he looked up, "just don't tell anyone, okay? And thanks for the... Um... What is this anyway?"

"It's Iguana-on-a-stick!" The kid said, very proud of himself, "best food in the wasteland! One bite will feed a hundred souls or a hungry raider! The ultimate..."

"Haha, I get it, I get it," Yemon winked at him, and put the iguana inside his pack in the wrapper of the last meal he had had.

"Whatcha doing to the well?" The kid asked.

"Fixing it, of course."

"Hm?"

"You'll see."

Yemon continued working, and barely an hour later he had the pump in working order again. The kid was amazed at how water would come out by just pulling at a lever like that. It was tremendously noisy too, but there was not much Yemon could do about that without some oil. He placed the well's bucket under the nozzle of the pump, and worked it.

"Wooow, that's so cool!"

"Yeah, sure beats having to drag the water up with this crappy bucket, doesn't it?"

"You're amazing sir!"

When the bucket was full, Yemon passed the Pip-boy in front of the water, and was nearly shocked out of his socks when the counter started croaking like a chorus of frogs. The water was somewhat radioactive, and the spirit particle count was even higher. Sighing, he took the hand pump filter from his pack.

"Whassat?" The kid asked, looking at the contraption.

"Just a hand pump for... Well, check by yourself."

Yemon pushed at the pump and gestured the kid to sip at the water coming out of it. He did so, and a moment later his face turned to one of disgust, spitting the water out.

"Phew! That's gross!"

"What? Really?" Yemon passed the Pip-boy in front of the filtered water, and there was barely a pip from it, so he tasted it, "hm, not the best water, true, but it's fine."

"Y-You're crazy!"

The kid ran off shouting "_crazy, crazy, crazy!_" leaving Yemon to finish filling his canteen. Like a camel, he took the chance to drink up copious amounts of water too. With nothing better to do, he decided to go to the tavern and greet that Aradesh character.

He somewhat regretted his decision when a dozen pairs of eyes fell on him. He was more grateful when at last someone addressed him directly.

"You must be that raider who saved the children."

"I'm not a raider, but otherwise yes," he said as he turned to the man talking to him. He had sharp features and bulging eyes, but most of his face remained hidden under a hood.

"You aren't," the man said in disbelief; there was some derision in his voice as he continued, "I do not like being lied to."

"That's... Great, I guess," Yemon shrugged.

"Do not overextend your welcome, stranger, we don't like your troublesome kind here. Now, what business do you have in Shady Sands?"

"I'm looking for a spirit particle filter chip, do you know where I could find one?" Yemon asked, and immediately remembered Takeda's warnings.

"A spirit particle filter chip," Aradesh repeated, and his voice had taken such a cold turn it could only be described as glacial, "and why would you need one of those?"

Yemon looked at Aradesh for a couple of seconds before opening his mouth.

_Okay, he knows what it is, but there's something weird here, I have to be careful._

"I'm afraid I can't answer that."

"In that case, I bid you farewell, stranger. I trust you will not need any help finding your way out of the village."

Aradesh turned away from Yemon, but he stood up and grabbed him by the arm.

"Wait!"

The response was instantaneous, and every man in the tavern jumped to their feet, many of them brandishing knives or other hand-to-hand weapons. Yemon looked around and let go of Aradesh, but didn't leave.

"I really need to find a chip, if you can tell me anything, please!"

"No."

"Please! I'm begging you!"

"I said no!" Aradesh turned to Yemon, and his anger was obvious in his face, "I am giving you your last warning, leave this town now, we won't have any more dealings with your kind."

As if to emphasize the point, several of the men took a step or two towards Yemon. He looked around for a few moments, considering his options, but finally gave up.

_Not worth the risk, if I get killed here the whole Vault is doomed._

Without another word, Yemon left the building, and moments later the town, without as much as a single look back.


	4. You Can Remember Your Name

"Who are you?"

**- Kosh, **_Babylon 5._

* * *

><p>It took almost an hour for Yemon to realize he had set off in the wrong direction. He left so flustered that he merely walked straight out of the village, not realizing he was going North. Thrice he stopped with an urge to go back and beat the crap out of everyone in the village until they told him what they knew, but all three times he managed to calm himself. It was on the third that he realized he was walking in the wrong direction.<p>

"I guess I need to pay attention..."

After fiddling with the Pip-boy, he found where he was on the map and established a new route. According to the pre-war paper map, there should have been some sort of industrial park where Vault 12 was located, but the scale made it hard to see. Either way, there were hardly any references he could take, there was only wasteland, and occasionally some smooth blackened remains of a road. Soon Yemon started to avoid stepping on them, the melted tar was very unpleasant to walk on, and got stuck to his waraji if he stepped into the softest parts. It was both intriguing and disgusting at the same time.

He stopped his trek during the hottest part of the day to avoid the heat and save water, taking refuge under the shade of a partly fallen ad billboard. While he waited for the heat to abate, he took out Urahara's diary and looked for the 12th Division.

"Gran-gran said they were the Research and Development. I wonder..."

He had seen the first time he opened the book that it was the very first page of the diary. What he hadn't realized at the time was that it was by far the longest portion of the whole diary, and took almost half the pages.

_I felt it was appropriate to start a new diary today, after the return of Kurosaki-san and the rest from Soul Society._

_The reason is that we lost. Despite their valiant efforts, Aizen is now in possession of the Hōgyoku. I fear the worst case scenario is closer to come to pass. There are many unknowns to be able to predict our chances of success, at this point all I can do is try my hardest and just hope for the best._

_There is still hope, because not all unknowns are on Aizen's side. A fairly big wild card is still on our side._

_Kurosaki Ichigo._

"Wow, it's... weird to read something about my great granduncle like this. Okay, lessee... 'Start by reviewing the state of the Gotei 13, first my old and _obviously _most important division, 12th Division and the Research and Development Institute.' Yeah, _obviously_," Yemon chuckled, "I wish I had met this guy, sounds like he was a complete riot."

Yemon kept reading, but came to a stop when he read about the Captain of the Division, Kurotsuchi Mayuri.

"Kurotsuchi Mayuri... Where have I..."

He looked up as he thought, and his eyes fell on the billboard. A moment later he opened them wide in surprise, stood up like he had been kicked in the ass, and took several quick steps back to have a better view of the advert.

**Spiri-Cola Quantum! New Flavour! New Bottle! Try it now, take the Leap!**

At the bottom of the billboard was a weird face with a huge grin and something that looked like a strange hat, offering a thumbs up to the viewer and in big bold letters the brand _Kurotsuchi Industries_ could be read.

"What. The. Fuck. Wait, what's this, there's some smaller writing... 'Some harmless but interesting side effects may occur, our hotli..' Damn this part's gone. What the hell is this?"

He almost went back to reading the diary but the Pip-boy started beeping. The rest time he had given himself was up. Sighing, he took a small sip of water, packed up, and only gave himself a few extra minutes to rush through the remaining pages for anything else unusual about the 12th Division, but nothing caught his eye.

_This Mayuri character sounds like real weirdo. I hope he can give us a replacement chip though. Well, he should be able to, Urahara says here the 12th prepared most of the Vaults. Hm, but Takeda said they didn't have any spirit particle filters in his Vault because they didn't need them. _

Casting aside his uncertainty, Yemon resumed his march. He arrived a mere two hours later at his destination, at least according to the map and the Pip-boy. But there was nothing there. Flat desert and only the barest of remains of some buildings where the map was telling him Vault 12 ought to be. Not far from him, a cliff side. He went to peep at it, and saw a several dozen meter drop into a large flowing river. He reeled and quickly pushed himself back, falling on his back away from the drop. It had been an extremely dizzying experience.

It wasn't the hiding place he had expected. Truth to be told, he wasn't even sure what he had been expecting, some sort of cave or something similar, perhaps.

"Well, if this Vault's anywhere around here, I guess it ought to be underground... I hope it's not carved on the side of the cliff, I _really_ don't want to do that again."

He started searching. Taking his bokken, he walked around vigorously tapping any piece of ground that seemed firm. There was a hollow metallic echo when he tapped in the middle of what appeared to be the remains of some sort of round narrow building. A tower of some sort, he guessed. He lifted the heavy trapdoor with much difficulty and found there was a well with a ladder embedded on the rocky wall.

"Bingo!"

He only allowed himself some excitement when he finished his climb and reached the bottom. The place was dusty, with plenty of cobwebs hanging from the corners, but it looked less disused than he had thought it would be. The ladder dislodged him into a rather wide, square underground corridor, with support beams on the side every few meters and lined with bricks. The narrow space with a ceiling over his head, buried under meters and meters of soil, felt familiar and comforting.

"No rats in sight either, awesome!"

He flicked the Pip-boy light on and took a few tentative steps away from the well, taking his goggles off. His walk was regular and decisive, and it was several minutes before he saw any changes at all. His heart sank when he realized what he was seeing.

"No. No, no, no! No! Fuck! No!"

The enormous gate of the Vault had been blown off its hinges and was laying in the middle of the corridor. He rushed into the Vault through the opening and saw the second gate had been blown off in a similar manner. There was no power, everything was as dark as the corridor he had just walked. The inside was in disarray, cables and pipes torn from the walls, furniture and equipment broken and thrown across the rooms. That Vault had come to a very violent end quite some time ago.

"I can't fucking believe this! Argh!"

Yemon bellowed in frustration. He had let his hopes build up way too easily.

_You fucking idiot._

The layout of the Vault seemed somewhat different from that of Vault 14. The entrance level had a whole lot of broken down heavy machinery, something that was kept in the lower levels of Engineering in his home. There was nothing he could identify as the air or water intakes to connect the Vault to the outside though, so he decided to go even deeper and look for some more clues. With the lifts broken, he had to use his obi as a makeshift rope to reach the next level down.

"No emergency stairs. What kind of idiot builds a Vault with no stairs between floors?"

The second floor seemed to be the living quarters of the Vault. Yemon was quite envious of how spacious and numerous the rooms were. There were bunk beds in all of them, but not in the density they were forced to use them inside Vault 14. However, it was all very... Empty, too. He couldn't be sure if it was because it had simply been emptied on purpose, but the word that came to mind when examining the rooms was _sterile_. Those rooms were there to sleep and little else.

It took him several minutes more to reach the next floor, making another makeshift rope with whatever was salvageable from the least destroyed mattresses. His father would have probably snickered at his efforts and then offered some advice. Freaking Engineer was a wonder with the Leatherman in his hands.

Yemon sighed.

_It's too early to give up._

The third floor was much more than he had imagined. If the second floor seemed huge in comparison to the living quarters of Vault 14, this one seemed _monstrous_. He had to climb down almost thrice the length of the previous floor distance, making him think there may be hidden floors that had to be accessed some other way, until he came out of the lift shaft and saw that the third floor was simply that tall and huge. The light of the Pip-boy barely reached the ceiling, but what surprised him the most was that the floor was literally strewn with dead bodies. Skeletons, barely any of them intact, a few covered with some tattered rags, a few remains of spears and other primitive weapons. There was rubble in some of the areas where the wall or the ceiling had collapsed, and as Yemon looked closer, he realized much of the equipment had been blown to bits in explosions.

Which explained why he had found two grenades between the skeletons. He knew what they were and the basics of how to use them, but the little things scared the hell out of him. Still, he took them all the same.

There were four doors coming out of the main space. One led to an infirmary, or so Yemon thought. The fact that the infirmary's beds were caked with dark blotches of old, dried-up blood however gave him second thoughts, as well as the nature of the equipment he saw scattered about the place. Saws, blades, sharp implements of all sorts, barely anything that suggested more gentle treatment of the patients.

The computer terminal had been smashed to bits, much to his annoyance. Even without power, he may have been able to take the disk.

The second room was much more intriguing. There were large, broken vats all over it, more than two dozen of them. That particular room had been hit the hardest, there were human remains all over it and, disturbingly, some of them appeared to have had rather grotesque features in life, with huge deformities and monstrous proportions. Yemon didn't give the first one he found a second thought, but became much more suspicious when he realized there were simply too many of them to be just a random coincidence, and that they were only in that particular room, where the vats were.

_Human experiments. Maybe. No wonder Urahara says this guy was off his rocker, but considering he was the one who put him in charge though..._

Yemon only gave a passing though to the fact that he was thinking about Urahara so naturally, even though he only had the diary and Karin's few stories to go by.

The third room was more intriguing. The main space had been subdivided in what looked like isolation rooms: small, cramped, empty except for one cot and nothing else; and it was by far the largest room he had seen in the Vault. There had to be chambers for at least a hundred people in there.

He took the time to look more closely at the first one. The door had caved in a way that suggested explosives too, but what caught his eye was the remains of all the electronics and piping. They were somewhat familiar.

Then it hit him.

It was familiar because that was a filter. A spirit particle filter. It had been blown to bits almost beyond recognition, but that's what it was. Those isolation rooms came equipped with a spirit particle filter system each.

He didn't stop to think why that would be necessary when the Vault itself didn't come equipped with one (if Takeda could be trusted with that). He didn't know anything about Kurotsuchi Mayuri to imagine what kind of thing he would be doing with a hundred different spirit particle-filtered isolation rooms, or why would he want them in the first place.

All he knew was that there were a hundred of them. That one was fucked up beyond repair, but there were a hundred of them.

It took him more than an hour to realize all isolation rooms had been blown to shit and there was nothing usable left. Not one of them. It almost looked deliberate.

He wanted to scream in frustration.

"Wait, wait, there's got to be spares somewhere, right? I mean, if they had all this equipment and hi-tech stuff, they've got to have a workshop with raw materials and," he suddenly realized that was what the first floor had, "well, I'll go check again, there must be spares up there. Let's finish checking down here first... Why the hell am I talking to myself?"

The last room was a sharp contrast with the other three. In a few seconds he realized it had to be the main quarters of the Vault's leader. Mayuri himself, probably. There was a huge bed in one of the sides, rotten and decayed but still betraying how opulent it must have been in the past. What intrigued him was that there was a much smaller one not far from it. Did Mayuri had a kid or something like that? Yemon didn't dwell on it. Unlike the rest of the Vault, that room had been meticulously stripped of equipment, book, or anything of the sort, looking even more bare than the rest of the Vault. Unlike the sleeping quarters, there were empty bookcases and furniture that showed how the room had been used extensively in the past.

And overlooking it all was something Yemon had never seen before. It looked like a mixture between a large pipe organ and a computer, with an absolutely huge screen and a double black-and-white keyboard for input.

"That was probably too damn huge to move. I bet they had to _build_ it inside the room. Still," he pressed a few of the keys, to no avail, "with no power it's kind of useless."

Yemon would have paid well for a crowbar at that point, but had to make do with whatever he could scavenge to take the computer apart. Unfortunately, the data storage had been practically destroyed, on purpose it seemed, but he did manage to recover one holodisk that looked promising. He was delighted to see that his Pip-boy could actually recover the data inside, even though it was only two recordings.

_"It is clear that regular humans have very low tolerance for spirit particle presence. While they can recover after a brief exposure while showing few side effects, anything greater than that quickly decays their body and turns them into souls or hollows. I will put into place a more extensive screening methodology, I have lost half the recovered subjects already while making little progress, these useless humans are simply too fragile! It will probably be better to scourge for surv-"_

**RECORDING ENDS...**

"Well, son of a... Just what the hell was he doing?"

_"-uch a bother. After the rabble destroyed most of my lab while I was out recovering some radioactive samples for my experiments, I have been working to replace the lost equipment, but it is simply too much to repair. If my useless assistants can't get us up and running within a week, I will have to move to the backup facility, after I feed them to-"_

**RECORDING ENDS...**

"Shit, could at least have said where the backup facility is!" Yemon sighed, "I guess I know what happened now, but who attacked here anyway? How did they even find the Vault?"

He suddenly remembered Takeda's words.

_You explain about the chip, they see you're human, and before you know it someone's put two and two together and is looking for your Vault. Or something like that. Bloody hell, is there someone targeting Vaults? Why would anyone do that?_

He put the holodisk inside his pack and closed it, hoping to try some data recovery later. He was about to leave the room when he noticed a hatch on the floor. It wasn't too big, and it looked surprisingly sturdy. Armoured even. He unlocked it and pulled it up open. For a moment there was a sucking sound as pressures equalized, and then the smell of stale air wafted up. Perhaps that was a secondary exit, like the one under Karin's... No, the Overseer's Command Post. Intrigued, he walked down the ladder.

The long, long ladder.

_Do the floors keep getting bigger as the Vault goes down or what? Sheesh._

He found that the ground was surprisingly soft under his feet. He had to walk several meters before the light of the Pip-boy let him see anything other than soft soil (sand, he corrected himself) and blackness. When a wall finally appeared, it was only a narrow strip of rock with rows of bars on either side. Huge, tall bars. Cages.

"What the... This place keeps getting weirder and weirder."

He hadn't thought there would be anything in those cages. He walked along the wall, and saw that, one by one, the cages had been bust open. Bars of metal bent into a twisted mess. Some from the outside. Others, from the inside.

The Vault had been empty for years, decades even, judging by the remains he had seen in the floor above him. Whatever had been in those cages would be just some sort of skeletal remains, if that.

He walked through the open bars of one of the cages to have a closer look.

The first thing that happened was the hissing sound. A low hiss from somewhere deep inside that cage. He stopped on his feet immediately, and his heart suddenly sped up.

_It can't be._

He was gripped by a very primal fear. Not merely fear of the unknown, or even the dark, the latter something he could find even comforting after a lifetime inside a Vault. No, he _knew_ there was something in there. Something that scared his very soul.

A pair of red eyes, shining as flames, came to life. He instantly knew he was being watched by something intelligent. And he had to get the fuck away. Right fucking now.

"Hun... gry," a loud, rumbling, deep voice said, sending a chill up his spine.

_Oh shit. Run. Stop fucking trembling and run. Run!_

He turned and ran as fast as his legs would carry him at the exact same moment the beast lunged forward and chased after him. He slip through the bars of the cage easily enough, and behind him there was a horribly crashing sound, together with the whining of metal being forced to bend in ways it was not supposed to. Yemon ventured a look back and saw an absolutely enormous hollow inside the cage. He (_he? it? He. does it really matter?_) reeled from the crash, but a moment later he headed straight for a large opening on the other side, bending the bars even more as he forced his way out.

That was a real hollow. Not the tiny rats he had fought before. Not the somewhat larger than usual scorpion. No, that was the real deal. He didn't even think about the weapons he was carrying, it all looked like useless toys next to that huge thing. He had only managed a glimpse of the white mask and a sort of large humanoid figure, before the dim light of the Pip-boy became blessedly too faint to see it.

He climbed the ladder two steps at a time, constantly thinking about not slipping up, not even once. Another crash and the whole ladder trembled as the lower part was yanked from the ground and the bottom third was broken off. Yemon was too terrified to realize just how fast he had suddenly started climbing that ladder. He jumped through the hatch hole and scrambled on all fours as far away as he could. The whole ground trembled with a crash, and a large arm pushed through the opening, reaching blindly around for him.

It came just short. Yemon still took a few steps back before collapsing to the ground on his bum. He was breathing heavily with a wincing noise. There was some sort of pressure in the air that was making it hard for him to breathe properly, and a damnable persistent croaking that was driving him crazy.

Croaking.

He looked at his Pip-boy. The needle on the spiripar counter was doing some very disturbing jumps.

_Is that the hollow doing this?_

There was another crash, another trembling, and the arm of the hollow was out again. Still couldn't reach him.

The third time there was a loud, ungodly roar that made his blood freeze in his veins, and when the crash came, the ground around the hatch gave way, and half the hollow's body crashed through it, reaching for Yemon. He was too surprised, and more than a bit terrified, to get out of the way in time. The enormous hand of the hollow grabbed his lower half and lifted him in the air.

Yemon let out a loud curse, of surprise, pain, and reproach at his own stupidity. He should have been topside even before the second crash. Desperately, he reached inside his clothes and pulled his revolver out. Without even thinking he emptied six shots on the hollow's mask, making a few dents and apparently angering him, but not succeeding at doing anything more conductive to saving his own skin. He struggled to free himself as the hollow brought him closer to his enormous mouth, and at that moment his eyes fell on the Pip-boy. The croaking had intensified, but that wasn't what caught his eye. It was the glint, under the Pip-boy's light, of the Quincy Cross on his wrist.

The thought came to his head without any effort. Hollow. Quincy. His great grandmother, his parents, even his grandfather, when he was still alive, all had insisted he had to study the texts of the Quincy. Family tradition. The Kurosaki family was the only family that cared one bit about the true knowledge Karin had brought to the Vault.

In his head, he had repeated the lessons a thousand times. Theory. But now there was a gigantic gaping mouth in front of him and he had half a second to apply the lessons or die a rather miserable death.

He raised his left arm, made a fist designed to cradle a bow into existence, and concentrated. _Redirect_ the flow of spirit particles, and _let go_ when shooting. You aren't _forcing_ the power, you aren't _shooting_ an arrow. You are a rock in the river, gently redirecting its flow, not a dam building it up.

The croaking of the Pip-boy intensified and a white light enveloped the Quincy symbol on his left wrist. Yemon made a fist and raised it towards the, now extremely close, mouth of the Hollow. The light intensified, but as it shot through the space he had created with his hand for the bow to appear, it shattered in an uncontrolled explosion of spirit particles. Yemon yelped in pain, and the hollow roared in the same way, as several teeth and parts of his mask shattered and went flying through the air.

The hollow let go, and Yemon fell with a roll on the ground. The trashing of the hollow brought him crashing down to the lower level, and only after the smallest of hesitations, Yemon turned around and ran away with the speed of desperation, making for the lift. He climbed to the second floor as the ground trembled around him with the trashing of the hollow, and by the time he made it to the first floor and recovered his obi, the trembling had grown faint, lost deep underground. Yemon gave himself only a few minutes to check the machinery, looking for a spirit particle filtering system of any sort, but he couldn't identify anything, and as the crashing didn't abate one bit, he decided to just make a run for it.

He was oddly relieved when he came up topside. The light of the evening was softer, and he ventured a glimpse around without the goggles. The wasteland wasn't any better that way, but at least he could see more clearly where he had to go. Even so, he put the goggles back on after a few minutes.

"Well, there's nothing to it I guess, I'll go back to Shady Sands. If they know anything about Vault 12... Hm, I wonder if they _actually_ know about this, that's gonna be interesting, if they'll even talk to me that is."

He was brought out of his reverie when a familiar crashing sound suddenly erupted under his feet. He instinctively took several steps back without looking where he was going, and found himself near the edge of the cliff when the Hollow crashed through the ground and appeared in front of him. He was covered in dirt and rubble, and it was obvious he had hurt himself making it out of the Vault, but they were now in front of each other, and buggered if he didn't look even hungrier than before.

Yemon cursed mentally over and over. This time there was little he could have done, even if he had set off as soon as he was topside, the hollow wouldn't have been far behind. He raised his arm and tried once again to create the Quincy bow. The Pip-boy croaked like a frog high on Spiri-Cola, and his reiatsu fluctuated wildly as he tried to bring the flow of spirit particles under control. It was really hard to fight the urge to put pressure on it, instead of letting it just _flow_ as he was supposed to. The hollow paused for a moment when the glow appeared again, but hunger got the best of him and he lurched forward towards Yemon.

Once again, he couldn't control the bow. There was a loud bang as the bow collapsed, and the explosion hurt both Yemon's and the Hollow's arm. He reacted faster than the masked beast and tried to put some distance between himself and the cliff, but the hollow jumped at him without hesitation. This time Yemon managed to keep the bow long enough to start creating an arrow, but when it came to shoot it, he blundered again and tried to _shoot_ instead of _release. _His reiatsu spiked when the bow collapsed, but this time, it did so directing the spirit particle explosion towards the direction he was aiming at. It still hurt, but hit the hollow in the stomach harder than before. The beast fell on the ground with a very loud and trembling thud, and Yemon could swear there had been several more thuds under his feet.

He didn't stop to think about it. For the third time, he made a bow, and started building an arrow. The Pip-boy croaked louder, his reiatsu increased and started to steady itself as he relaxed and let spirit particles flow into the arrow. When the time to release it came, the bow collapsed for a third time, sending him tumbling back, but the arrow flew forward. It caught the hollow in the right shoulder, and like Yemon had done, the hollow fell to the ground tumbling back.

The muffled crashing underground intensified, and before he realized what was happening, Vault 12 collapsed under Yemon's feet. It all felt surreal, like the sky had suddenly decided to take a tumbling. There were echoes of rolling thunderous crashes, and moments later the Earth itself had taken a tumble and was upside down, flying over his head.

Only it wasn't the Earth. It was him, flying down the cliff with a chunk of rock and a badly wounded hollow. He had never plunged into water from height, and he didn't quite know what to expect. It was a harder crash than he had anticipated, and he was so disoriented he couldn't tell up from down, or left from right, until he was pulled up to the surface by the air bubble that was his, blessedly waterproof, back pack. He spluttered around, fighting to keep afloat without knowing how to swim, and swallowing more dirty water than he would have wanted for a year. He didn't know how long he fought the water like this, but slowly his consciousness started to give way.

He was only jolted halfway awake when he felt himself being dragged off. A voice he couldn't recognize talked close to his face.

"Well, damn, you aren't Ichigo."

"Kuro... saki..."

He had wanted to say _Yemon_ after that, but he slipped into complete unconsciousness before he could.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>Cliffhanger! Dun, dun, DUN!

_ Blackout1170: _I feel completely vindicated after the reveals on the Manga about the Quincy and Ichigo's family (this was originally written in 2011, before the reveals, so hah!). That said, I have other plans for Yemon, and he's too much of a Quincy newbie for all the cool powers, and I think adding all those characters would make the whole thing too complicated. Maybe for the sequel!


	5. No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion."

- **Dalai Lama **

* * *

><p>Yemon had some very strange dreams he couldn't quite make sense of. He thought at first he was dead, and yet somewhat alive, eaten by a hollow in his dreams, over and over. It was a never ending, feverish nightmare he couldn't wake from, until he felt his whole body burning, like fire was coursing through his veins. In his feverish, barely awake state, he started clawing at his right arm, until a hand restrained him, firm and rough.<p>

"Stop that, you're going to pull the drip out."

He caught a glimpse of a person looming over him, and the image morphed into a monstrous shadow engulfing him as he sank again into burning unconsciousness.

The second time he woke up, he only did so when his stomach turned and tried to dislodge all the dirty water he had swallowed. The same hands pushed him to his side as he vomited, still firm and rough, but then cradled his head with a gentleness that would have surprised him if he had been aware enough.

"There we go, that's good," the voice said, as he retched again, "just don't make a mess now," the unknown person added with some good humoured sharpness.

After that, Yemon slept for several hours without nightmares or fever. When he opened his eyes, it took him several seconds to assess his surroundings. He was laying down on a creaky old bed, covered with some dirty sheets and blankets, and as he looked around he saw he was inside a poorly put together shack. There was a large and partly broken down chest next to the head of the bed, and a single dim lightbulb dangled from a cable of the ceiling. A makeshift woodburner that seemed to double as a stove, with a pan on top of it, occupied the middle of the single room. And on the other side of it a person was sitting in front of a desk. From where he was he could see he had spiky and messily cut dark hair, a lean complexion, and he guessed he was barely above five feet. He seemed to be fussing about with something on the table, and then he placed his right hand over his left elbow, bending forward and trembling. A few seconds later he leaned back on the chair, and relaxed noticeably.

The place reeked of dust, musty mould, and vomit. He was pretty sure he was responsible for some of those smells. When he looked at himself, he saw he was completely naked.

"What the... Ugh..."

The person turned around on his chair and looked at Yemon, and when he stood up he realized it was actually a woman. Or a girl. She was kind of boyish in her appearance, and didn't look a day older than sixteen, if that. She had two hair-clips on the right side of her hair, shaped like six petal flowers.

"Oh, you're awake," she rubbed her left arm and let go, approaching Yemon to take a look at him, "how are you feeling?"

"Ugh, like fried bits of hell," Yemon answered, passing both his hands over his face, and then looked at the girl, "but better than drowning. Thank you."

The girl was looking at him very intently, with her hands on her hips and bending forward slightly. She was dressed in a rather dirty grey shirt and somewhat darker grey pants with tall boots, the whole outfit appearing frayed and patched, showing all the signs of having been worn well beyond its intended lifetime.

"What's your name, kid?"

"Kurosaki Yemon," he answered simply, "it's a pleasure, uh..."

"Kurosaki," her eyes became even more penetrating, and she frowned, "Ichigo?"

"Uh... That was the name of my great granduncle," he answered, in a tone that still implied he wanted to know her name.

"Uncle. Who were your great grandparents then?"

"Kurosaki Karin is my great grandmother," He said simply, not explaining any further but aware of the look of familiarity her eyes had taken as soon as he started saying names.

"Karin. Shit, that was her name," she appeared relieved, standing upright again, "for the life of me I couldn't remember. It's been so long..."

"And you... are...?"

The question was left hanging when the girl turned around and grabbed something from her desk. When she turned again, she was holding Urahara's diary in her hand.

"Hey!" Yemon protested.

"Easy kid. I saw it when I checked your pack to see if anything inside could be salvaged, but it was watertight," she shook the book, "it doesn't say here, what happened to Ichigo?"

Yemon narrowed his eyes as he looked at the girl. She suddenly didn't seem so young anymore, as if her outer appearance betrayed a much greater amount of experience.

"Who are you?"

"Ichigo," she insisted.

"He died in the great war," Yemon said, sighing and laying down again, gazing at a particularly rusty spot on the ceiling, "that's what Gran-gran told us. Kurosaki Ichigo and Kurosaki Isshin were the ones who saved the V-" he suddenly clammed up.

"Vault 14, I know," The girl prompted, and merely shook the book again when Yemon looked at her in surprise, "are you sure of that? Did Karin see him die?"

"What?"

"Did she see him die?" She repeated; her voice had a sharp edge now, and Yemon almost saw a hint of desperation in her eyes.

"Yes. That's what she told us. She saw... Aizen. And Ichigo and Isshin, and the other Shinigami, when the King's Key was created and Karakura Town was destroyed."

Yemon saw the light in her eyes flicker for a few moments and then die, the intensity of her gaze gone together with her scowl. She dropped the diary on the bed and took a few steps back, letting herself drop on the chair as if her energy was gone.

"Who are you?" Yemon ventured to ask again.

"Arisawa Tatsuki," the girl said in a flat voice.

"Uh," Yemon hesitated, as the name didn't tell him anything, "so you know of my family?"

"I know your family," She corrected him, and then corrected herself, "I _knew_ your family," she shook her head, "I'm an idiot. Should've figured it wasn't Ichigo."

"What?"

Tatsuki looked at Yemon, with those empty, wide eyes. She spoke in a rather lifeless monotone now.

"I thought I had felt him. Felt just the same. Just like him, fighting a hollow. I thought it was him, floating down the river. I saw no orange hair, but I knew I had felt him. I'll never forget that feeling of reiatsu. That's what I thought;" She quieted down for a few seconds, still looking at Yemon, until he stirred uncomfortably, "But it was only you."

_Well, excuse-fucking-me! _Yemon thought, but bit his tongue. She _had_ saved him, after all, and there was something odd about her.

"Why would you... Um... I still don't understand anything, you thought I was my great granduncle?"

"That idiot left without saying goodbye. He just went to save Orihime, and..." she distractedly adjusted the two hair-clips in her hair.

_She doesn't feel like a soul, she feels human. It can't be, that was a hundred years ago. She's gotta be crazy. Or something._

"That was... A hundred years ago or something. But... Are you human? You don't feel like... a... soul..."

Tatsuki stood up when Yemon started asking questions, and merely walked off the shack without saying a word, leaving him mid-sentence. He was confused for a few seconds, but she soon walked in again, carrying his clothes.

"Here you go," she said, tossing the bundle at him, "I gave them a filtering bath to remove the radioactive water. Next time, don't go swimming in the river, or drink from it. It took two bags of RadAway to get rid of all the crap you got in you."

Yemon blinked in surprise, but it wasn't hard to tell he was being kicked out. He didn't think the girl appeared angry though, she didn't appear to be thinking anything he could read at all. He thought he much preferred the sharper girl that had been asking all those questions.

"Ah. Thank you," he was embarrassed for a moment, but Tatsuki merely walked out of the shack to let him get dressed. _She got you naked in the first place, you moron!_ Tatsuki had recovered all his gear with him too, and when he checked with the Pip-boy he was relieved to see no dirty water had contaminated what he had in the canteen. When he came out, adjusting his goggles hastily, he found that the precarious construction was nestled between the rocks not far from the bank of the river, and the canyon was surrounding him on both sides. Try as he may, he couldn't see a way up. Tatsuki was sitting on a rock by the door, looking at the water pass with a flat, bored expression.

"Arisawa-san..."

She looked at him silently.

"How do I get out of here?" He finished.

"Where are you going?"

"Well..."

_Do I explain about the spirit particle filter chip? I guess so._

"I'm looking for a spirit particle filter chip for my Vault, the one we had broke down and we lost all the spares in an accident long ago. Do you know where I can find another Vault, or someone that may have a replacement? I was looking inside Vault 12, there's this Mayuri character who may be able to help, but I don't know where to find him either..."

He stopped babbling and looked at Tatsuki. He couldn't tell if she had taken anything in or not. Finally, she stood up and started walking.

"You can try Junktown. I'll show you."

She walked off and Yemon followed her. They crossed the river through a wide ford with numerous large rocks that allowed them to cross without dipping into the radioactive dirty water, and soon started climbing a narrow ravine on the eastern side. At the top, Yemon suddenly felt a hit of hollow reiatsu, and without thinking he raised his arm and started to concentrate on creating his Quincy bow. There was a second raise of reiatsu and Tatsuki suddenly swatted his arm, making him lose concentration and making the blue light disappear with a loud pop.

"Stop that," she reprimanded him, and pointed up; there was a hollow flying high overhead, but it merely continued its flight and went away, "Junktown's that way," she pointed southeast, "about three days from here."

Yemon fiddled with the Pip-boy. He realized Shady Sands was actually very close, and for a moment he thought about going back, but shook his head and simply added a marker in the approximate direction and distance Tatsuki had indicated.

"I see. Awesome."

Tatsuki turned around and started to walk back without answering a single word. Yemon turned and called her.

"Arisawa-san!"

She turned. Bored, flat, bland. Empty.

"Thank you very much for everything!" Yemon said, bowing deeply, "truly, thank you! And I'm sorry!"

He wasn't sure what he was apologizing for: for not being Ichigo, for not bringing any good news, for not being more fun, or for not having helped her back. He simply thought he didn't like to see those empty eyes. When he looked up, Tatsuki made a small smile, gave an even smaller nod, and turned away, leaving him alone in the empty wasteland.

After an hour walk, he found a nice shadowy spot under a fallen construction he couldn't quite identify, a mess of twisted steel and concrete rubble. Settling nicely under it to pass the hot part of the day, he opened his pack and realized he was absolutely famished. He vaguely remembered throwing up at some point while he was sick, and it must have been several hours ago. When he made inventory of his food, he saw the dried-up iguana on a stick, and it looked unappetizing enough to instead go for the dry rations, and another ginger biscuit. He started with the biscuit, and much to his satisfaction that settled his stomach really well.

_Still, what an ordeal. She really saved my ass there, between me drowning and the radiation. I hope the fact that I'm peeing orange is because of the RadAway thing. As long as it doesn't glow, heh._

Yemon smiled.

_Don't drink the glowing water my butt! Gran-gran, that river wasn't glowing _at all_!_

He closed his eyes as he chewed, and relaxed. It was a very nice narrow cranny under the rubble, cool and safe. He thought about Tatsuki at first, but soon started thinking about the hollow. It was clear he'd have to practice a lot with the bow to make it work when he needed it.

_But there's no need to use it all the time. Just like Arisawa-san said when she stopped me. That was some surprise, she's got a very noticeable reiatsu._

Subconsciously, Yemon reached out and tried to feel for any reiatsu around him. Ever since he learned that skill, he'd practised it in the Vault, but had never managed to feel anyone other than his father. When he had asked Karin about it, she had explained how everyone in the Vault was just a plain human, and it was rare for humans to develop spiritual powers without inheriting them. He had asked her once why he couldn't feel her presence then, to which she didn't answer.

She had looked so sad, though, that Yemon had never asked her about it again.

Out in the wasteland it was very different. It was much easier to feel the presence of even the normal humans, and the beasts were even easier to spot. The reiatsu of the hollow had been very disturbing. But Tatsuki's reiatsu had been something else. Bright, clean, just...

"Just like that," he muttered, eyes closed.

He opened them and jolted up. _Just like that. _He was feeling Tatsuki's reiatsu, a good distance away. Also, he felt there was something else close to her; he couldn't quite make what it was, he could only focus on Tatsuki. It was changing, flaring and dropping.

"She's fighting something."

The reiatsu disappeared very abruptly. Yemon hissed and scrambled out of his hideout, getting his bearings from the Pip-boy and looking into the distance. He pulled his goggles up and, blinking in the bright light, looked again. There was definitely a thin wisp of smoke raising towards the sky.

"One hour to get there. No way, I'll be there in twenty minutes!"

He started running. He kept telling himself she would be fine.

When Tatsuki came to, the first thing she did was wish for whoever was hammering her head repeatedly to fucking stop. She put her hands on her head and waited for the room to stop spinning before trying to move. She was laying on the floor in some dark room. Brick and tile construction, old, shabby, dirty as hell too. She looked around and saw it was the inside of a cell of some sort.

She tried to remember what happened, but for the life of her she couldn't She remembered there had been a fight of some sort, someone kicking down the door of her shack, catching her by surprise.

_Fuck, how could I let someone catch me by surprise? How did they find me? Followed that kid's reiatsu? Probably, or mine. How bloody careless.  
><em>

She couldn't remember the fight. The ringing in her ears and the dizziness were familiar though. Stun grenade, it had to be. That mean the fight was a write-off, she'd never remember it. She put a hand to her neck and searched, and then breathed in relief.

_No slaver collar. Must be raiders. Hah, like I'll let them have their way with me. Right, Orihime?_

She sighed, and put her hand to her hair, trying to stroke the familiar hair-clips. She sat up like a flash and rode the nauseating dizziness when she couldn't find them. She felt around and looked frantically, but she simply couldn't find them.

"Oh you sons of bitches," she muttered, "if you've taken them I'll fucking..."

Her angry promises of pain to come were interrupted by a high pitched scream. There were some deep, guttural laughs to go with the scream, and then the person screamed again, and again. Every time there were laughs and even a couple of cheers, until the screaming ended with a sharp, wet thunk.

Tatsuki's heart was racing. She knew what that wet sound had been, but she didn't like what it meant. She pressed her fists together and flexed her arm and leg muscles, looking for weaknesses. Everything was in place, every muscle primed by decades of her karate training. She couldn't say she _liked_ those moments, but it was when she had to fight for her life that she felt she actually had a life, one to fight for. One that had been saved at a price.

She shook her head.

_Not the time to think of this. Shit, not now... _She clenched her fists trying to stop her hands from trembling. _Later, just keep it together. Okay, good._

She assumed a comfortable crouching position from which she could launch herself easily, curled up in a corner. Someone was approaching. Big someone, judging by the heavy steps. Tatsuki readied herself while outwardly assuming the appearance of a scared, cornered little mouse.

_Morons always fall for this. Let's hope these guys are morons._

Her expression of fear became a bit too good to be acting when a light came on and the person stepped into view.

_That's not a fucking person._ Tatsuki corrected herself.

It was a humanoid, but it was at least eight feet tall, and only because it was walking with a hunch. It was bald, with a grey-greenish skin that looked more like leather than regular skin. And it looked strong, with unbelievably huge, bulging muscles covered in veins. The expression on its face would have been stupid-looking if not for the white half-mask covering its forehead and reaching down to its eyes making it rather terrifying.

"Waaa, you awake!"

_Shit, it talks too?_

"Hmmm, you weird, boss was right. Better take you to Master, I thinks, yes."

"P-P-Please don't hurt me," Tatsuki said, mentally rather pissed at how her voice had trembled quite a bit more than she had wanted it to. There was no way she was _afraid_ of that thing. The bigger they are, the harder they fall.

"No, no hurt you, Master very nice," the beast grinned, "veeerrrry nice, yes."

"Who are you?"

_Yes, who the fuck are you freak? Never seen anything like you out here. And I've been here a while._

"Haha, Master call us Super Mutants! Yes! We Super, we strongest!"

Tatsuki refused to move while the super mutant opened the door of the cell. She just crouched in the corner, waiting. Waiting while the super mutant walked in, came towards her, reached out to grab her...

_Now!  
><em>

Like a flash, she sprang from her crouch and rushed under the super mutant's grasp, and with a swift move jumped at his knee, kicking it with both feet on the side as hard as she could. There was a very satisfying _crunch_ and the super mutant buckled. However, when she did a second kick with the balls of her right foot on the base of the super mutant's neck, it felt like she had kicked a brick wall. She bounced back while the super mutant bellowed in pain and struggled to get up again.

She realized at that moment she couldn't win hand-to-hand against that thing. Some brass knuckles or even steel-toed boots and it'd be a different story, but not as she was, barefoot (_the hell are my boots?_) and empty handed.

She turned and rushed out of the cell. As she got out, she almost ran into a second super mutant, coming to see what his comrade was yelling about. She managed to slip under the gigantic pair of hands that were coming for her and roll under his enormous legs. She stood up like a flash and prepared to cripple that second super mutant in the same way she'd done the other ugly in, and at that moment she caught some movement through the corner of her eye.

Something behind her. On the side. Closer and closer.

She didn't even have time to turn her head before something smashed on her side. She saw the room had shifted, and someone had put the ceiling in front of her, but an instant later her balance returned and she saw she was on the floor after having hit the wall opposite to the fight.

A moment later the pain came. Intense, burning, unbearable pain. It felt like her whole right arm was burning from the inside. She opened her mouth to scream, and her voice came out weak and strained as even more pain flooded her, together with a very disagreeable crunching sensation on her side when she tried to breathe.

She tried to breathe again, over and over, even if it meant agony. All she could manage was a shallow mouthful of air. Even with the pain, she managed to look down at herself, her right arm was laying twisted in a way that couldn't be.

"What are you idiots doing?" One of the super mutants said.

Tatsuki followed the voice and saw another of those giants, carrying an enormous sledgehammer. It looked like it was even bigger than a regular sledgehammer, and the bulk of it was made of some sort of device Tatsuki was in too much pain to identify. The mask covered more of his face, down to his nose, pale and terrifying.

"Bitch hurt me!" The crippled one answered, prompting some derisive laughs from the other two.

Someone approached her. Tatsuki tried to speak, but only managed a hiss and a gurgle before clenching her teeth together to fight the pain.

_Pain. Pain like this. Please no more pain. It hurts. It hurts so much. I don't want any more pain..._

"Ya ruined her boss," The super mutant said, looking down at her, "can't show to Master like this."

Boss approached and looked at her. Tatsuki's eyes went from one to the other, trying to find a way to escape. To escape them, to escape the pain.

"Yeah, yer right. Ah well," Boss reached down and his enormous hand took Tatsuki by her hair, "guess we'll get her."

"Aye!" The other super mutant replied, a bit too enthusiastically.

When Boss pulled her up, Tatsuki finally screamed in pain as her shattered right arm hit her side and danced in the air, dangling like a dead piece of meat. The pain of screaming was almost a bad as the pain of her arm. Her breathing became quicker and shallower.

As the super mutant dragged her off, she saw other cells, but they were all empty. Then she saw the ones that went before her. Or to be more precise, she smelled them before she saw them, the smell of blood and butchery, and the smell of decay. Several net bags with mutilated body parts dangled from the ceiling as they passed along, some looking disturbingly fresh, blood still dripping from them. Others looked old, blackened bones and charred remains.

The pain receded slightly as the panicked rush of adrenalin hit her. She reached up with her arm and tried to free herself from the enormous hand holding her hair, but accomplished absolutely nothing.

"We eat this one too? Good!" A new voice said.

She was violently pulled off her feet and unceremoniously dumped on a huge wooden slab. The hit was pure agony, and for a moment she almost blacked out in pain. She only managed a grunt, even though she had wanted to scream her lungs out.

"This one very lean. Not much meat."

"Yeah, but lean meat taste best!" Boss commented, and the two super mutants laughed heartily.

Tatsuki managed to open her eyes and look at the mutant, and saw he was sharpening an enormous cleaver. _Shink, shink, _went the stone over the metal. A moment later the super mutant grabbed her and the knife came down on her. With an expert move, the super mutant slid the knife along her clothes and ripped them open, and much like he had been handling a fish, he turned her around, prompting a painful gasp from Tatsuki, and finished ripping the clothes off her.

She thought she was in pain before, but suddenly a cascade of pure, distilled agony shot from her back. She screamed at the top of her lungs, screamed in unbearable pain, screamed until she had no more air, and still wanted to scream more.

"What are you doing? Don't peel the skin off!" Boss complained.

"What? You only one likes skin! Too chewy!"

"It's good when roasted."

It was almost a reflex, she didn't have the energy for consciously thinking how to do that. She lashed out and tried to kick up, tried to hit one of the bastards, tried in her agony to bring someone down with her.

"Woah! This one lively!"

An enormous hand grabbed her legs and pinned them down, and another pressed down on her back, choking the air out of her lungs. She felt the cold edge of the blade above her buttocks.

She was almost relieved.

_End it. Please. Just kill me. It's too painful. Please..._

An explosion shook the basement of the ruined building, and the super mutants suddenly let go of her. There were screams, and gunfire. Something fell down with several thumps. More screams.

"Arisawa-san!"

She didn't answer.

More gunfire. More super mutant screams. Scuffles and thumps, and it all died down with two more reports of gunfire.

"Arisa...!"

The voice was close. Tatsuki moaned something, and suddenly there were more shots. Yemon rushed in the room and fired six shots as fast as he could at the super mutant holding a knife over the body on the table.

_Down!_

He reacted half by instinct, half by following the flow of reiatsu. He quickly leaned back as the super sledge flew over him just mere inches from his face, and then, dropping the gun, he grabbed his bokken. With a fast, fluid motion, he unsheathed and turned as fast as he could to hit the wrist of the super mutant with all his strength. There were several snaps, one of them the bokken breaking in half.

The super mutant screamed in pain and crashed on the wall, dropping the super sledge. Without the smallest hesitation, Yemon grabbed it and, struggling under the weight, spun and brought the head of the enormous hammer to the head of Boss. There was a wet cracking noise as the head was squashed against the wall and was turned into a dripping splatter of red and grey on the bricks.

Yemon took only a few moments to recover his breath and turned to Tatsuki.

"Arisawa-san!"

He rushed to her side and put his hand on her hair, looking at her. She was hardly breathing, fast but very shallow breaths, and her eyes were glassy and out of focus.

"Arisawa-san! Can you hear me? Arisawa-san!"

"I... chi... go..."

_Shit! Well, she's alive, she's... Bloody hell, what happened to her._

He quickly reached his pack and pulled everything out in a near panic. He didn't even know where to start, it was much worse than anything he had ever seen while helping his mother in the infirmary. The skin of the left half of her back had been nearly completely ripped off, her right arm had been, for lack of a better word, shattered, and judging by how her chest was collapsing every time she tried to breathe, there were a lot of broken ribs on that right side too. He passed his hand slowly up along Tatsuki's back to put the skin back in place as best he could, and pulled out the adhesive plaster patches from his kit. It was enough to keep the skin in place for now, he had to work those ribs quickly.

"Arisawa-san, this is going to hurt, please bear with it! You'll breathe better soon!"

Yemon looked at the right arm and sighed. This was going to be a bitch to do. He took the ripped off clothes that were laying about and made a thick bundle, placing it on the right side of Tatsuki's ribcage. Then, he carefully lifted her slightly to move the broken (_shattered_) arm to the other side, and very gently let Tatsuki lay down on the right side. She grunted and moaned in pain, but after a few moments her breaths became less shallow.

_I wish I had something elastic. I'll have to secure that in place with tape, but can't wrap it around her. Shit, I hope that's not damaged the lung too bad. Hurry up you idiot, you have to get her out of here._

As he worked, Yemon started to feel more comfortable and less panicked and, with the clarity of thought, anger started rising inside him. For a moment he regretted having killed all the bastards already, he should have left them alive and done to them ten times worse that that.

_How the fuck can someone do something like this? How!_

He forced himself not to think like that when his rage started to make his hands tremble. When the bundle was secure in place, Yemon laid Tatsuki on her back very carefully. Her breathing had definitely improved, but she was still in a world of pain. Yemon would have smiled if the fact that she seemed more lively didn't mean he could see the unbearable pain she was in expressed on her face.

"Okay, I'm going to splint your arm now, this will hurt but you'll feel a lot better after this, okay?"

Tatsuki didn't react

"Arisawa-san, talk to me. Are you there? Are you listening?"

Yemon saw how her eyes started to become moist, and her expression changed as she started sobbing, small sobs mixed with grimaces of pain. Without forcing her to move, Yemon put her arm around her head and bent down to embrace her.

"That's okay. I'm here. I'll get you out and you'll be fine."

"I... I..." Tatsuki struggled to speak.

"It's okay. You're safe now. You're safe."

Yemon let go and saw Tatsuki looking at him, as if she was seeing him for the first time.

_Okay that's good, she's more conscious now._

He managed to find a few pieces of wood that would serve as splints. She pulled at the upper arm and Tatsuki yelped, but he placed the bone back in place.

Mostly.

_I don't even know how many fractures there are._

The forearm was fine though, which was a relief. Yemon bandaged the arm tight, but not tight enough to cut blood flow, and after letting Tatsuki recover slightly, he carefully helped her sit up, legs dangling down from the wooden slab table, and wrapped her with his blanket. He packed everything in his pack again, and secured it to the front on his chest. He picked up his revolver, and after some hesitation, he also picked up a large knife almost as long as he was tall, to replace the broken bokken.

"Okay Arisawa-san, time to get out of here."

He took his obi off and, tying the ends together, fashioned a harness by making the belt go around his neck and under his armpits, so that he could hold Tatsuki more easily on his back. When he was ready, he placed her broken arm carefully over his shoulder, and she reached around with her good arm, holding weakly onto his shoulders. Carefully, he stood up and bent forward slightly placing her on a comfortable carrying position on his back.

"Piggyback ride, can't complain about this, huh?"

Tatsuki didn't say anything. Her chin was resting on his shoulder, so he could clearly hear her even if she just mumbled. All he could hear was the laboured, shallow breathing.

"Come on Arisawa-san, if you don't say anything I'll start rambling to myself here, and you really don't want to hear that! Say, do I look that much like my great granduncle?" Yemon said, "everyone says I look a lot like Gran-gran, but I don't know how much she looks like... Oh, right, Gran-gran is how I call Karin, she's my great grandmother, I told you that, right? So, how..."

"Sh... Shut... up..." Tatsuki mumbled.

"That's more like it," Yemon replied.

Being out of hands, he decided to use the large knife as a seat for Tatsuki to ride on. He held on to the flat back of the knife with both hands on his back, using the flat of the knife as a seat for holding Tatsuki up.

"T... that... 's... cold..." Tatsuki complained.

"Yeah, sorry, can't figure out any other way to carry it. And hey, at least you don't have my hand groping your butt, right? Or you want me to do that instead?"

"I... ougtha... cl... clobber... ya..."

Yemon smirked.

Once he was outside, he took one look around and quickly identified the way he had to go to reach Shady Sands. It was mercifully close, so he set off as fast as he could without hurting Tatsuki too much. It was still too far, and she wasn't in good condition. Yemon rambled on and on about life in the Vault, hoping to keep Tatsuki talking to him, or at least telling him to shut up already (which she did a few times, to his satisfaction).

"Yeah, so it's called the Goat Test. Get it? Punny names for everything, it's hilarious. Well, so when I did it, the thing started beeping, and came back with 'Overseer'. I was like _whaaaaa_ and everyone was like _whoaaaa_, and then someone complained that the whole thing was rigged, because Gran-gran was the Overseer, and it was clear it was rigged so that I would be the next one. And..."

Tatsuki started coughing. At first Yemon didn't worry too much, it was good that she'd cough from time to time to avoid fluid building up in her lungs. But the cough got worse, and she moaned in pain as she coughed.

"Arisawa-san?"

She continued coughing. Yemon turned and saw dark specks on the arm she had around him. Holding onto the giant knife with one hand, he managed to use the other to raise his goggles, and realized it was red. Tatsuki kept coughing, and blood continued to dribble out of her mouth.

_Shit. Shit on toast._

"Arisawa-san!"

Her coughing died down, and as it did her grip on Yemon's shoulder gave. Her arm dangled down, lifeless.

"Arisawa-san!"

_Shit! I have to run, fuck I have to get there!_

He could see the outer wall of Shady Sands in the distance. Too fucking far. Tatsuki's breathing was becoming very weak. He was running as fast as he could, but it wasn't enough. He needed more speed. Much more speed.

_And when you redirect the flow of spirit particles to your feet, you will find yourself floating, as if standing on a leaf on top of a steady current. It requires a delicate balance, letting yourself be carried with the flow without fighting it, lest you plunge into it and crash down._

Yemon furrowed his brow.

_Fucking Quincy techniques are all so fucking delicate and fuck me but I'll have to try it or Arisawa-san is dead. She's barely breathing. Damn those sons of bitches!_

Yemon kept running, concentrating. There was practically no croaking from the Pip-boy, and he felt the reiatsu building under his feet and around his legs.

_No, no, don't build up, it has to flow._

It took several minutes, several agonizingly long minutes, before Yemon was confident enough to try. The first step of his Hyrenkyaku would have been classified as embarrassingly short by any proficient user of shunpo, but even after his near-stumble on the landing, Yemon knew it had been faster than running.

_Yes! Everything that didn't work inside the Vault works just fine out here!_

He tried again, and for a second time he managed. He couldn't afford to fall down, the last thing his charge needed was to come crashing to the ground. He continued for several minutes doing tiny hesitant Hyrenkyaku steps, seeing the town come closer and closer. He was beyond out of breath by the time the walls were at striking distance.

"We're... here... Arisawa-san..."

No answer. He couldn't even tell if she was breathing over his own desperately fast breaths. He rushed to the gate and was stopped by two very startled guards, who pointed their guns at the stranger who had just appeared out of thin air.

"You again? What..."

"Medic!" Yemon shouted, "I need... your... medic...!"

"Hold it kid, don't..."

"Lemme through!" He bellowed, rushing forward.

The two guards trained their rifles towards him, but Yemon disappeared in front of their eyes. In two steps he reached the clinic, crashing down to his knees as he crossed the entrance.

"Doctor! Doc! Help!" He shouted between gasps.


	6. Falling Down

"Because a cold rage seizes one at times  
>To show the bitter, old and wrinkled truth,<br>Stripped naked of all vesture that beguiles  
>False dreams, false hopes, false masks and modes of youth."<p>

- **James Thompson, **_The City of the Dreadful Night._

* * *

><p>Despite his exhaustion, Yemon managed to help the doctor place Tatsuki on the surgery table at the back of the clinic. The room was the cleanest thing he had seen since he had come out of the Vault, almost to the same standard as their own infirmary. He was very conscious of the amount of dirt he was dragging in, so he stepped away as soon as Tatsuki was safe.<p>

He, however, didn't stop babbling incoherently while also panting and coughing.

"She's got broken ribs, and a broken arm, and she's got a huge rip on the back, it's probably very dirty, I couldn't graft it properly, she was coughing blood before passing out about ten minutes ago, I couldn't tell if she was breathing when I got here..."

"I got it kid, I got it, get out and let me do my fucking job."

"Uh..."

Despite the curt reply, Yemon recognized the tone and demeanour of authority, it was not too dissimilar to that of his own mother when there was something serious to take care of in the infirmary. Dirty and tired, he was in no position to help anymore. He sighed and left the room, and not two steps later he collapsed down to his knees.

"Oh my, are you okay?" The nurse asked.

"I'm... I'm fine. Just a bit tired."

"Well deary, if someone can save your friend, my husband can."

"She's in really bad shape. I've worked with my mother in our infirmary, I don't think I've ever seen anything this bad."

"Then you should know you have to let the doctor work."

"Oi!"

A voice interrupted them, and the two armed guards from the town's entrance walked in, looking none-too-happy, but regarding Yemon with certain caution, weapons at the ready but not pointing at him just yet.

"Oh my. You're just on time Seth, I believe Razlo may need you..."

She looked at Yemon cautiously, but he didn't seem to understand what she was talking about.

"That bad, huh?" The older male said, "okay, I'll stay here," he talked and then looked at Yemon, "you've got some nerve kid, coming here after all that's happened."

"This is the only doctor I knew where to find... nearby... Why are you standing there?"

Seth had walked in and was standing by the surgical room's door, holding his hunting rifle relaxedly over his shoulder. He looked at the nurse, and so did Yemon.

"I'm afraid... If Razlo can't help her... We may need to help her pass."

She explained this slowly, as if she was somewhat confused by the fact that Yemon didn't know what they were talking about. He suddenly opened his eyes wide in understanding, and stood up like a Jack-in-a-box.

"Are you fucking shitting me?" He turned to Seth, shouting and gesturing wildly, "if you fucking touch her I'll rip your damn..."

"Hey!" Seth shouted back, "put a sock in it, kid. I've seen far too many people turning into hollows when they're about to die, I've pulled the trigger myself too, so let me tell you, your little tirade's just a bunch of bullshit to me. I'll be doing her a fucking favour!"

Yemon's hand twitched almost imperceptibly, just as much as the rifle on Seth's shoulder shook when he firmed his grip on it. After only a small hesitation, the nurse stepped between them.

"Listen deary, my husband will do his best, so just take it easy, okay?"

"Yes!" Razlo shouted from inside the surgery room, "so shut the fuck up out there already and get out!"

Yemon held Seth's gaze for a few more seconds, then turned around swearing, intending to go out. He was stopped by the nurse.

"Incidentally... How are you going to pay for all this treatment?" She asked, calm and business-like.

Without hesitation, Yemon reached inside his clothes and pulled his revolver out. The two guards reacted fast and started to point their rifles at him, but he merely offered it to the woman on top of his open hand.

"I saw last time there aren't many guns around here, I assume you could use this."

"Oh great," She muttered, taking the firearm and examining it close, "another broke wastelander. Does it come with ammo too?"

Yemon unslung his pack and offered it to the nurse.

"Yeah. Just take whatever will do from here. There's a first aid kit too, in case you can use it."

"First aid?" She asked, interested, putting the pack on the table and opening it, "you have any stimpacks by any chance? It's been months since we used the last one, it'd make healing your friend a lot easier."

"Stimpacks? Uh... No... What's that?"

"I see," she sighed again, "figures, or you'd have used them already. Nevermind then," she was interrupted when Razlo called for her loudly from the surgery room, "look, I'll check later what's in here, just go for a walk and try to calm down."

She disappeared inside the back room, and Yemon decided to walk out to wait by the door, picking the oversized knife on his way. The handle was busted, he'd have to get rid of it and try to find something else to attach to the tang.

"You still have the gall of coming back to our town," the familiar voice of Aradesh interrupted his examination.

"Yeah well," Yemon looked up, rather irritated, "I'm here to see your doctor, so shut the fuck up and leave me alone, I'll be out when he's done working on my friend."

"Isn't that convenient. Kindly come and go as you please! Take whatever you want! You and your raider friends..."

"I'm not a raider!" Yemon interrupted him, mentally treading dangerously close to a point of no return.

"Of course not. A mercenary then? Don't go around killing for fun, only for caps? Looking for specimens, perhaps?"

Yemon's right eye twitched nervously. A few guards had followed the commotion, including the only other armed one, and were standing close to them. Yemon didn't even see them. Meanwhile Aradesh was still talking.

"Just looking for something for someone else's experiments, I'm sure, you look far too dimwitted to be doing them yourself. I already told you, your kind is not welc-"

Without any warning, Yemon suddenly disappeared as he executed a Hyrenkyaku to appear less than a foot away from Aradesh, grabbing him by the collar of his clothes. The Pip-boy's croaking suddenly shot up as his reiatsu spiked, and the Quincy symbol on his wrist glowed faintly.

"My kind! What the fuck do you know about my kind!" Yemon shouted, ignoring the startled guards who were finally reacting and rushing them, "my kind's trapped and will die if I don't find that fucking chip, a person who just saved my life is about to get a bullet through her head if your bloody doctor can't save her, I'm not in the mood for your bullshit!"

The muzzle of a hunting rifle was placed right next to his head, and several hands grabbed him and pushed him away from Aradesh. The village leader didn't look particularly troubled, and before they could give Yemon a rougher treatment he ordered them to stop with a softly spoken word. They obeyed, reluctantly, but kept very close to the vault dweller.

"Very convincing. So, you claim you are not a raider, or a mercenary, you're just... Looking for a spirit particle filter chip, to save someone. How are we supposed to believe you?"

Yemon was less than a heartbeat away from shouting another angry reply, but the look on Aradesh's face caught his attention. He didn't look as dismissive as he had been before, and although his haughtiness hadn't diminished one bit, it seemed to Yemon that he was expecting something from him. A quick glance around and he realized everyone appeared divided in their attention between Yemon and Aradesh.

_He doesn't want to lose face. Okay, what's he scheming here?_

"What are you proposing? That I somewhat prove it to you? How?"

All eyes turned to Aradesh now. He waited a few moments for effect, and then started to speak in a calm tone.

"In Shady Sands, the only _Shinigami_ we ever see are the raiders that come to take the food we grow. Apart from that, the only other ones we have ever encountered are the _Shinigami_ that travel as mercenaries with the Caravan. Truth to be told, we have little need for food, as few of us have spiritual power above normal, and the food that is regularly taken seemed like a small price to pay to avoid further retribution from the raiders."

Yemon looked around, and saw several townsfolk were looking down at the ground, seemingly embarrassed.

"But..."

"Let me guess," Yemon interrupted, "that wasn't enough, you give a bully your lunch money, and before you know it he's making you run his errands."

"What?"

"They started taking more than food," Yemon clarified.

"Yes," Aradesh's eyes flared in anger, "not a week ago, they also took my daughter, Tandi."

He looked angry enough, but the rest of the villagers were a curious mixture of embarrassment and anger themselves.

"Okay, so you want her back."

Aradesh nodded wordlessly.

"That's not going to solve the issue of them coming to collect."

"It is unlikely they will part with her without conflict," Aradesh responded, with a well controlled voice and giving Yemon a very significant look.

"I see," Yemon said, thinking fast, "in exchange, you take damn good care of my friend..."

Aradesh nodded again.

"And you tell me what you know about the spirit particle filter chips."

There were some murmurs and the villagers exchanged nervous glances, but Aradesh's firm voice cut the noise completely.

"Agreed."

"Good, so it's a deal," Yemon raised his knife and casually rested it on his right shoulder, "where are these unlucky raiders then?"

And so, after a very short rest, Yemon was once again travelling the wasteland, with only his canteen and the large knife flung across his back. He hadn't been able to find anything to replace the broken handle in the junk pile of the village, so he merely removed the rest of it and wrapped the tang tightly with a long strip of cloth. The only thing he added was a heavy lead counterweight at the end to be able to swing the thing properly, and had fashioned a very crude sheath (more like a sack cloth bag really) to be able to carry it on his back.

He was somewhat amused by the fact that the place had an actually designated "junk pile" for anyone to scavenge whatever they needed. He didn't see much he'd consider even potentially useful, but then again, he didn't have to live outside in the wasteland.

The raiders were not far from Shady Sands, and going by what Aradesh had said, they were nothing but rabble, except for two or perhaps three real Shinigami. The rest merely wore the uniform as a gang sign.

He saw the camp from a good mile away, even before he realized what it was. At first he thought it was just a random pile of junk, with a half-demolished building surrounded by rusted metallic parts of something. It wasn't until he was much closer that he saw the few tents surrounding it, and saw that most of the junk around the building were rusted-out cars.

A real car was something he had never seen before, he had only descriptions from the saved archives and a few pictures, but that was it. They looked very different from what he had seen in the Vault, they were always depicted as small metal and glass cubes with tyres designed to navigate overly congested cities, but these were big enough to wear a radscorpion as a bonnet with room to spare.

He chuckled to himself as he wondered whether cars had mutated into giant horrible creatures too.

_I think this place's getting to me, I don't think that's supposed to be funny..._

By the time he got to the camp, several people wielding spears and swords had come out to greet him, in a we-will-eat-you-alive kind of way.

_Stop thinking about that._

"Well, well, and who may you be?" One of the raiders asked, walking forward and cockily tapping his shoulder repeatedly with the back of his sword.

"Kurosaki Yemon. Pleasure."

The raider appeared surprised by Yemon's polite response for a moment, and then let out a single laugh.

"Name's Petrox. Well kiddo, ye've got about ten seconds to give us a good reason why yer here."

"Oh that's easy," Yemon replied, appearing nonchalant, placing the thumb of his right hand inside his obi but letting his left arm hang free, while his fingers repeatedly tapped the Quincy symbol for reassurance, "I'm here to get Tandi back."

"Tandi?" The raider asked, arching his eyebrows.

"Yeah, the girl you guys kidnapped from Shady Sands a few days ago."

"Hm, too bad. Tell ya what kid, I'll do ya a favour," The raider said as looked Yemon up and down, while the latter shifted his feet carefully under the cover of his hakama, "give us everything ya got, and we let you walk with yer life."

"Not an option," Yemon replied simply, "I'm not leaving without Tandi."

"That means yer not leaving at all. Kill him!"

_So much for diplomacy._

As soon as the raider started charging, Yemon blurred out of view and disappeared, only to instantly appear right in front of him. With their combined impulse, he gave Petrox an elbow to the face, and sent him tumbling back with a completely squashed broken nose, dropping teeth along the way as he rolled on the ground.

The lack of reaction from everyone else, who continued charging at him without sparing their leader a second look, was very telling, or so Yemon thought. They didn't seem to give one flying tooth about each other. He turned and flashed back a few meters, making a mental note on learning how to do Hyrenkyaku backwards at some point in the near future, and started concentrating on creating his bow.

It formed well, but became unsteady every time he used his Hyrenkyaku.

_Well screw it, it's only five of them. I don't have to use this._

After a few steps of Hyrenkyaku the five opponents had been spread out somewhat, so he suddenly skidded to a stop after a long step and turned to the nearest opponent, readying an arrow. He didn't seem to think much of his bow, seeing as he was charging straight at him with a spear pointing forward. Yemon let go of the arrow and quickly stepped aside to avoid the attack.

With a cry of pain, the raider collapsed to the ground, putting his hand on his stomach and bleeding profusely.

This time, the others stopped in their tracks. Yemon looked around and saw everyone with their eyes fixed on him, and then he realized it was the bow they were looking at.

"First time you face a Quincy I take it?"

_Not that I'm a real Quincy, I just barely got the hang of this._

The raiders suddenly started shouting loudly and encouraging each other as they charged forward again. The air of the battle had changed; while before they seemed to be rather cocky, enjoying jumping at what they thought was a weak opponent, they looked deadly serious this time.

_All business now._

Yemon caught some strange movement on his peripheral vision, and turned just in time to see one of the raiders throwing something at him. He ducked a moment before two throwing knives passed whistling over his head, and as he stood up he shot an arrow at that raider. He hit him in the right arm, and a second volley of knives narrowly missed him.

Having lost precious moments rooted in the same place, another raider was almost on top of him. Fortunately for Yemon, his clumsy sword attack was easy enough to dodge. Doing half a spin, he grabbed the raider by the sleeve and pulled at him. While he lost his balance, Yemon put his hand on the back of his enemy's head, and brought him crashing down face first. There was a loud hollow crash, and the raider didn't move anymore. A small pool of blood advanced very slowly on the ground around his head.

When Yemon looked up, he took a quick stock of his foes. The wounded knife thrower was standing up, another rider was coming at him, and the one he had just downed was the third.

_I'm missing one!_

The next second happened in his head in the slow motion hyper-awareness of a critical battle moment. He felt a slight reiatsu coming from behind him, and as he turned he saw the last raider had already started his attack, a horizontal slice with his sword aimed at his chest. In that critical moment, he made the right decision and turned away from the attack instead of trying to dodge, and with a loud metallic _clang _the katana was deflected on the oversized knife he had flung over his back.

The raider recovered well from the surprise, and quickly pulled back and away, dodging the weak arrow Yemon had fired in his haste.

_He's not bad, much better than these useless freaks._

"What the hell's going on out here?"

The loud voice stopped the raiders on their tracks, and everyone turned towards its origin. Walking out of the building were two raiders, one was rather scrawny looking and sporting a mohawk, not very tall, and the other, walking behind him and with a self-satisfied air of authority, was who Yemon supposed was the boss. He had a wide square face and long hair reaching down to his shoulders, and a rather ridiculous-looking thin moustache split in two that only went over the corners of his mouth.

Looking at them move, Yemon realized they both wore the Shinigami uniform like they actually owned it.

_Right, here we go now. These are actual Shinigami.  
><em>

"Boss!"

"Aramaki-san!"

The raiders rushed to their boss, leaving the wounded behind without a second thought. Yemon took the chance to recover is breath and see what they were planning, preparing to use Hyrenkyaku if necessary. There was some confusion as everyone tried to explain at once, but in the meantime Yemon and the raider with the mohawk kept looking at each other, eye to eye.

Without waiting for the discussion to end, the raider walked forward, and started grinning while he unsheathed. Yemon took a cautious step back and looked around.

"Wherecha looking at?" The raider asked, "noone's gonna get in da way, jus' you an' me kiddo."

"Really?"

"Yes," his grin became even wider, and he pointed back at the other raiders with his thumb over his shoulder, " 'tis how real men do things, not like those dogs."

"I see," Yemon let the bow collapse, and reached back to the handle of his knife, "I guess I should draw then."

"Thank ye kindly," the raider snickered, "Inoguchi Ryuu, 12th Seat, 11th Division. Former."

"Kurosaki Yemon," he replied, dragging the knife out of the sack and throwing the latter aside, "no cool rank, I'm afraid."

As he grabbed the tang with both hands, he realized a length of about two feet of cloth was hanging off the end.

_Bah, the cloth's coming loose. Ah well, should be fine._

Ryuu appeared to be savouring the moment, trying to look intimidating while holding his Zanpakutō with only one hand in front of him. He looked like a kid about to open a Christmas present; he seemed to be trembling all over, grinning madly and with almost bulging eyes. It crossed into ax crazy territory when he licked his sword and giggled to himself, barely containing his excitement.

Yemon put his left foot forward and raised his knife up at an angle at shoulder height, one hand on each end of the tang.

_Still not balanced enough, I'll have to drive with the left and slide the right hand, like a sledgehammer._

Without even trying, thinking about a sledgehammer brought back the fight with the super mutants, and Tatsuki. He shook his head and concentrated on the crazy Shinigami in front of him.

_No time for that now._

Several seconds passed, where they just looked at each other, each waiting for the other to make the first move. Despite how jittery he was, Ryuu wasn't really giving any clear openings even as he constantly shifted and moved his Zanpakutō about. Yemon looked like he was emptying himself, waiting with infinite patience for the other to start something.

As he did, his reiatsu raised noticeably, becoming very stable and well above normal, and the Quincy symbol flared with blue light every other moment.

The raiders all looked rather interested in the fight ahead, looking confident their side would come ahead. Only their leader appeared uneasy. Very uneasy.

"W-W-What... What did he say hi-hi-his name w-w-was?" Aramaki asked one of the raiders.

"Kurosumthin'... Kurosaki sumthin' I think," he replied nonchalantly.

The thin moustached raider turned to the fight again. We was sweating profusely.

_I-I-It can't be. That reiatsu, and that cleaver thing, no guard, no hilt, as long as he's tall... But... Shit, it can't be. Kurosaki. Shit!  
><em>

In a blink, the fight started.

Ryuu rushed forward so fast Yemon thought he must have been using Hyrenkyaku. Yemon brought his knife down right as the raider appeared almost on top of him, a narrow slash that became almost vertical, but was deflected with an horizontal slash by Ryuu. The power behind that strike would surprise Yemon when he finally realized it.

However, his mind was in a well trained state of emptiness, reacting only to what he found during the battle. As Ryuu prepared a second horizontal slash to cut through Yemon's wide open guard, the latter let the inertia of the blade came about by making it pivot on his right hand, pulling hard with the left for leverage as he added pull with his back and waist. The result was an exceedingly fast attack that cut through Ryuu from his chest to his shoulder, with the heavy blade snapping ribs and cutting through soft tissue like a butcher's cleaver.

The original intent of that weapon.

Yemon never knew if Ryuu realized what had hit him before he died. Given that he himself hadn't seen the raider's second attack, which had given him a cut in his upper left arm, he didn't think it likely.

The excitement among the raiders had died down. Most of them turned to Aramaki, who looked ready to soil himself. When Yemon looked at him and started walking in his direction, he quickly fell to his knees and bowed until his head nearly touched the ground.

"Kyaaa! Kurosaki-san! P-P-Please forgive us!"

The rest of the raiders looked very surprised, until a very angry Aramaki turned in his bowing position to give them a mouthful.

"You idiots! You have no idea who this is! Get down and beg for forgiveness!"

Yemon was standing absolutely gobsmacked, while his brain kept dropping into an infinite loop while trying to reboot over and over. Finally there was an internal beep as things fell into place, and he barely managed to restrain his laughter.

_Well damn, I may as well milk this for all it's worth, lucky!_

He walked to Aramaki and looked down at him, while the former 11th Division Shinigami trembled in misplaced fear.

"I'll be taking Tandi back now, if you don't mind."

There was no response, but Yemon thought that his trembling had increased.

"Well?"

"Ah! You... You see... Kurosaki-san," he hesitated, stirring uncomfortable while still bowing down, "we kinda... Sold her... Hehehe..."

Aramaki sat up, scratching the back of his head and half-laughed stupidly, while everyone else exchanged looks. All the raiders were kneeling down by then, although most weren't sure why, other than because their boss looked rather scared of that kid.

"You sold her?"

Yemon's question had come out perfectly calm and natural, because try as he may he couldn't quite get what Aramaki was driving at.

"Yes, to the slavers in the White Tusk, eh-hehehe... heh... eh..."

Yemon's face barely changed, but there was a very noticeable flare of reiatsu, and something started croaking loudly when it happened. His eyes tried to burn a hole through Aramaki's skull.

"You _sold her,_" He finally said, pronouncing every word with extreme care, as if daring Aramaki to correct him; his hands started trembling, while he firmed his grip with his right on the tang of his blade, "you kidnapped a kid, and then _sold _her into _slavery_."

"Y-Yes! They paid us well, two thousand caps! But... But you can have all the caps! Really! Yes! Um, well, you can have the caps we have left... Eh, well, you see..."

"I _don't see_."

"We kinda spent half of it in booze already, eh-heheh... But you can have the rest! Really!"

Without any warning, Yemon suddenly reached forward and grabbed Aramaki by the collar, pulling him to his feet, and so making the two of them face each other less than an inch away.

"Listen to me, you asshole. You're a fucking Shinigami. You're supposed to help the souls of humans and purify the hollows. You sure as fuck are not supposed to go around _kidnapping kids and selling them into slavery!_"

"B-B-But... Look around you, what are Shinigami supposed to-"

"I don't give a fuck if the world has gone to hell!" Yemon shouted, right after something snapped inside his head, while his voice became progressively colder, "you dumbasses better start acting like you're supposed to. I'm going to remember your faces, and if I ever hear of you getting back to this raider bullcrap, I'm going to find you, and I'm going to _slaughter_ every last one of you, you understand me?"

"Y-Y-Yes..."

Yemon pushed Aramaki back, making he fall on his butt. At that moment, Yemon didn't even remember that he was outnumbered, or that this had all been a bluff. It was just taking everything he had not to lash out and try to kill _someone_.

After a few more seconds, he managed to calm himself down a bit.

"Now, give me those caps, and tell me where these slavers are."

"Yes, yes! Of course! Um... What are you...?"

"I'm going to have to go buy her back, aren't I?"

Aramaki stood up and ran back inside the building, and that's when Yemon realized all the raiders were still there, looking at him.

_"Fuck's sake,"_ he muttered, _"I fucking hate this place. I swear, all I want is to get back into the Vault."_


	7. The Price of Freedom

"You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy."

- **Obi-Wan Kenobi, **_Star Wars: A New Hope_.

* * *

><p>The slavers' camp was a good half a day away from the raiders' camp, so Yemon set off immediately after he had finished collecting their money. One thousand two hundred caps and about a hundred 10mm bullets jingled in the bag hanging from his obi.<p>

_I wondered what they were talking about exactly whenever they talked about "caps". Bottle caps, I can't believe they use this as money._

He still couldn't decide whether he regretted having taken off while Tatsuki was still in surgery. On the one hand, he didn't want to waste time, and judging by the fact that the girl Tandi had been sold as a slave, the best course of action was to get her back quickly before he lost her track forever. On the other hand, if Tatsuki didn't recover, according to the townsfolk, she'd likely start to become a hollow and someone would need to "help her pass."

_With a bullet. I should be there, she's alone and she saved my life. I'm such a bloody coward. Looking for this girl is just the excuse. Was she really a friend of my great granduncle?_

When the sun started to set, he took his goggles off and watched the horizon. The life colours were nothing like the pictures he had seen in the vault. The images in the computer archives were even worse, the projection on the convex tube monitors was full of distortions, and painted in lifeless colours.

Even if it lacked refinement, one thing the analog technology had was reliability. Easy to build, easy to maintain, and that matters when it has to be used for centuries in a self-contained space.

_Wish the spirit particle filtering was just as simple._

Not wanting to travel in the dark, Yemon used the last moments of natural light to find a good spot to spend the night. For once, there was little choice, and he readied himself to sleep in the open, next to the largest shrub he could find. He looked up at the starry sky, the one thing he liked about the outside world. In the dark, the sky didn't make him feel as exposed as during the day, and the stars were something absolutely incredible to behold. There was no moon, making the desert imposingly dark even for a vault dweller like himself.

_Should have brought my pack. I'm bloody hungry, and it's going to get cold soon._

He curled up and prepared to spend the worst night he had yet had during his wasteland adventure, radiation sickness aside. His brain kept working itself into knots as it tried to thread through all the events of the day, even though he knew there was no point in doing so. Things were worse once he fell asleep, as it was a jittery light sleep that kept waking him up on the slightest noise, imagined or otherwise, while his mind continued to conjure in his dreams a mixture of images from raiders to super mutants, and the people of Shady Sands, maimed or killed, or paraded in front of his eyes as an arrangement of bleeding body parts for mutants and hollows to feast on. In his dreams, a bleeding and maimed Tatsuki started to turn into a hollow, contorting in pain and screaming horribly, and without thinking about it he put his gun to her head and pressed the trigger.

He woke up with the gun's report. For a moment, he couldn't tell whether the noise had been real or just in his dreams. But it was morning already.

Hungry and rather tired after the restless cold night, he nonetheless managed good time and reached the slavers' camp before noon. It looked just like Aramaki had described it, a massive fence made of scrap metal, sharp spikes, and broken glass, surrounding a bunch of old, almost demolished, and badly rebuilt, brick houses.

It was not the kind of place one would want to walk in alone. After having thought of what to do about it for most of the morning, he had come up with a plan, a really simple, possibly stupid plan, but the only thing he could think of given that he wasn't sure how good his bluffing really was. A good distance away he took his goggles off, looked for a good outcropping with a vantage view of the only entrance to the place, and put them on a rock, tying it with a string to a shrub growing from it and securing the string's other end on a knobby feature of the rock. The result was that the goggles moved every now and then when there was some breeze, but stayed in place.

_They should be able to see the glare of them from down there. Hopefully they'll think there's someone watching me, if I can pull this off right. Still, it's bloody bright, haven't gotten used to this yet._

After taking a few moments to collect his courage, he started his trek to the entrance of the White Tusk. He didn't get within ten meters of the entrance before two armed guards showed up, pointing automatic rifles at him.

_All right Yemon, here we go now. Don't freak out this time._

"Woah, woah, hold it right there," one of the guards called, "the hell you think you're going kid?"

"This is the White Tusk I take it?" Yemon replied in an easy tone.

"Yeah, it is, well done. Now, what the hell are you doing here?"

"I'm here on business," he answered, tapping the bag of caps and making it jingle merrily, "I'm looking for some merchandise."

"You? Hah! I don't think so. You don't strike me as the type," The guard responded and looked at his companion, and after exchanging glances, they readied their weapons, making Yemon take a cautious step back, "So, kid, why don't you..."

Yemon didn't give him a chance to finish. He reached for his knife and disappeared in a blur of Hyrenkyaku. A moment later he appeared right behind the first guard with the knife held against his neck, and almost instantly the other guard appeared behind Yemon, pointing his gun at his back. Yemon glanced back, and gave what he hoped would look like a badly concealed glance towards the outside.

To his satisfaction, there was a small but visible intermittent glint in the distance.

"You guys aren't bad," Yemon said, smirking but not putting the knife away.

"Are you crazy?" The guard behind him asked.

"Look," Yemon pulled the knife away, trying to appear calm, "I'm here to do a job, and I intend to do it. Are you guys out of product or something?"

The guards looked at each other past Yemon for a few moments, and he noticed one of them looking in the distance in the direction of his decoy.

"Okay kid, leave your weapon here and..."

"Hah! Yeah right," Yemon responded, prompting a grin from the guards.

"Smart kid. No joke, we'll let you in, but start any shit and you'll be dead before you know what hit you, got it?"

"Sure thing."

The guards escorted Yemon in past a second entrance in the inner wall. He wasn't too sure what to expect, but when the gate opened, he was almost disappointed. There was a common area in the middle where a few people were milling about. On one side there were a few tables and an open air bar, and on the other side there were two people roasting half a brahmin over a fire. In the middle of the place was a very large pit, which filled Yemon with both dread and curiosity.

"One piece of advice, kid," the guard said, "don't be a jackass, people here are a bit touchy."

Trying his best to appear unconcerned, Yemon turned to him.

"Thanks. Who's in charge in here?"

"That'll be the two beauties up there," the guard answered, pointing at one of the houses.

It was the only two-storied house in the place, and more liveable looking of the lot. On the second floor was a balcony, and from a distance Yemon saw two there, lounging easily on some seats he couldn't quite make out. One had dark long hair, the other short blonde, and both were wearing white clothes, the dark haired one a very revealing outfit with a short skirt and a top that didn't do a damn thing to cover anything other than a bit of her breasts, and the blonde something that almost reminded Yemon of his Shihakushō with the colours reversed.

But what really caught his attention were the eyes. Each one of them was missing an eye, the brunette the left one, the blonde the right one. The only reason he could see from the distance he was at that they were missing an eye was because they both had something like a white mask around the empty blackness of the hole where their eye should have been.

"Yeah, they're really something, huh? Blonde's Mallia Menoly, brunette's Aivirrne Loly," the guard said, mistaking Yemon's transfixed attention, "but anyway, you won't be talking to them two," he caught Yemon's attention again, and pointed in the opposite direction, "that there is Gregory Jones, he's the one in charge of the _business_ side of things."

Yemon was about to ask what other side apart from business there was, but Gregory noticed the two of them talking and gesturing towards him, and approached with a very easy step and overtly friendly demeanour. He was rather tall and broad shouldered, with a square jawed face and dark skin. But what really caught one's attention was his purple suit and wide brimmed hat, both clean and well kept.

"Why hello there, haven't seen you around these parts, mister..."

"Kurosaki Yemon."

"You can call me Gregory. Welcome to the White Tusk, Kurosaki Yemon, best place to do business in the whole damn wasteland. Whether you're buying or selling, we don't ask questions, we don't say nothing, it's a tough place and we all got to make a living. What can I help you with today?"

"My employer is looking for a girl," Yemon answered, keeping his sword-for-hire routine up, "tall, dark complexion, better a teenager. Got anything that fits the bill?"

"Hmm, perhaps. Let us take a look at the merchandise," Gregory gestured as he walked, prompting Yemon to accompany him; he then turned and shouted, "hey Ran! Get the keys to the pens, we have a customer!"

Yemon caught through the corner of his eye a woman leaving one of the buildings and running towards them, short haired blonde head held low. Gregory led him to a building at the back of the plaza, the shabbiest construction of the lot, with half-demolished walls and an almost non-existent roof. The whole thing was surrounded by a wire fence topped with broken glass and shrapnel.

"Here we go," Gregory announced, with a satisfied air, "the hell took you so long Ran?"

He smacked the woman on the back of the head before snatching the keys from her hands, and Yemon had a close look at her for the first time. She must have been pretty at some point, he thought, but now half her face was covered in scars, and she was rather dirty and unkempt. She was wearing a dress that looked more like a sack with a few holes for putting her head and limbs through, and wore a collar around her neck.

Yemon took a deep breath and tried as best he could to steel himself from everything around him.

Gregory guided him to one end of the house, and opened the door. Yemon was immediately hit by the smell of stale humanity, bodily smells mixed with a musky stale air that nearly made him gag. He got used quickly to the low light, and almost wished he hadn't when he saw the state of the people inside.

"Here's the women we've got at the moment. I'm thinking you'll find some quality here that will be fit for your purpose perfectly."

"My _employer's,_" Yemon clarified.

Several women of all ages, from a few very young girls to a couple of grandmas were looking at them, standing at a distance and making a semi circle, some pushing hard against the wall. Yemon tried to search quickly for a girl that would match Tandi's description, but he couldn't help lingering on each one of them as he looked. Faces, some nearly lifeless, others all too alive, filled with dread, pain, resentment in some cases. He wanted to take a deep breath of clean fresh air away from that hell hole, and at the same time do something very drastic to put an end to it.

Curled in a corner was a tall girl with a dark complexion and raven black hair. Her position showed that she was very afraid, and didn't look as dirty as the rest, probably fairly new. If she'd look up he'd be able to take a better look at her face.

"Ah, I see you are a connoisseur, Kurosaki-dono," the supposed respect of the formal title rang completely fake in Gregory's lips, "tat's top quality material, very recent acquisition too," Gregory walked towards her, and Yemon couldn't help follow _very _close to him, "definitely a fine investment if you were to acquire her."

Hearing the two men approaching, the girl curled up even more, trembling in fear. Yemon called her.

"Oi girl, look at me."

His voice had come rather sharp, something Gregory apparently appreciated but for all the wrong reasons. Yemon wanted to grab her and run away as far as he could, she looked up and immediately saw it had to be Tandi. She had an air not unlike Aradesh around her, but she nonetheless was fairly attractive; taking after her mother her father had said. Dark complexion, darker hair, small and slightly perky nose, wide penetrating eyes, and a slight overbite that gave her a charming smile.

Or so Aradesh had claimed. She wasn't smiling, she looked completely terrified. She was wearing one of those crude dresses, and a collar around her neck, same collar all the slaves seemed to be wearing.

Gregory had one look at Yemon and knew immediately it was a sale. It was a matter of getting a good price for the prime merchandise he had there.

"As I said, very fine indeed. Top quality, which I hope you'll understand commands a premium price. Since you are a first time customer, I shall give you a special discount, and you can take her off my hands for a mere eight thousand caps."

Yemon's eye twitched. He now had to _bargain _for the price of a human being. He had found the idea absolutely revolting, but now that he had to actually do it, it was twice as bad.

_Calm down. If you start something here you're done for, calm down._

"That seems rather steep," Yemon said, refusing to look at Gregory, "you just said she's new, that means a lot of effort to train her properly. I can't pay that much."

"Yes, of course, you are right Kurosaki-dono. Nonetheless, she can be rather valuable for the appropriate customer, since she hasn't been _broken in_, if you get my meaning. One hundred percent guaranteed, checked by our doctor."

Gregory laughed gruffly at his own joke, and Tandi quickly looked down and curled up even more, trembling noticeably. Yemon felt his blood boil and, without thinking, his hand started to reach for the knife on his back.

At that moment, a large commotion broke outside, people shouting and whistling, and some even cheering. Yemon turned quickly to the door, and Gregory, seeing his tense stance, mistook it for surprise at the sudden noise.

"Ah, no need to be alarmed, Kurosaki-dono. Come, we can continue our business later, I think you will like the entertainment."

Yemon let go slowly of the knife's tang and gave Gregory a sideways glance, but he just made a gesture inviting him to go out. He was led towards the pit in the center of the plaza, where all the slavers, men and women, had congregated, cheering while looking down. Up at the balcony, the blonde short-haired woman hadn't moved one bit, but her dark-haired companion was standing and leaning forward over the railing, looking at the pit with an amused half grin on her face.

When Yemon looked down, it took quite a bit of self control not to give outwardly too much sign of being startled. Down in the pit, an almost naked man, wearing just some shorts and a slave collar, was fighting two radscorpions with a spear. Everyone in the camp was at the pit, looking at the fight, cheering or booing, many of them were exchanging caps and papers, making bets on how long he'd last or how well he'd do against the scorpions.

_What the hell is wrong with these people!_

The fight turned out to be a very brief affair. The first clumsy attack of the slave made it clear he was not a consummate fighter, and after the second he lost his spear to a radscorpion's pincer. The end came quickly, but not quick enough to avoid an agonizing painful passage for the slave. Yemon gripped the railing around the pit hard as the man screamed in pain, and without even realizing his anger sent a pulse of reiatsu around.

Gregory looked at Yemon in surprise, and a handful of slavers were looking around, trying to identify the origin of that pulse. When the purple-hatted man looked up at the balcony, he saw the dark haired, one-eyed woman was looking at Yemon. After a few moments she smirked maliciously, and looked at Gregory, nodding. The man nodded back, and turned to Yemon.

"Tell you what, Kurosaki-dono. Seems to me you've got a mean looking weapon there. Why don't you try your hand here? Aivirrne-sama pays well for entertainment, we'll make it worth your while."

Yemon looked at Gregory, then turned to look at the women in the balcony. Menoly didn't seem too interested, but Loly was giving him a look that Yemon, for lack of a better word, could only describe as _hungry_. He turned to Gregory and gave himself a few moments to think.

_Okay, all in, let's see if I've read this right._

"If I go in there, my fee's taking that girl for free."

Gregory's smile disappeared, and he whistled when he realized Yemon was serious.

"That's a mighty steep price you're trying to charge there, son."

"As you said, quality takes a premium," he gave Loly a very obvious side glance, "I guarantee your boss hasn't seen someone like me in there for quite a while."

For a moment, the two men regarded each other intently. After that, Gregory started laughing.

"Yes, yes. Kurosaki-dono, you really are sharp. As you say, this show is for these lovely ladies' benefit," he turned to Loly and gave her a small and clearly respectful bow, "so it's a deal, a good show and the girl is yours. Let's go get you changed."

"Changed?" Yemon asked in sudden surprise.

"Yes," Gregory chuckled, "as I said, this show's for the lovely ladies' benefit. Ya gonna use that big knife on your back or want another weapon?"

"Hm, if I can choose, what about a really big gun?" Yemon said, smirking.

"Hah! I like you, Kurosaki. Melee weapons only, it's only fair! Come on."

"Melee only?"

"You heard me! No funny guns or demon magic, hand to hand like a man."

_Well, damn._

A few minutes later Yemon emerged down in the pit, wearing nothing but a pair of shorts and barefoot on the soft sand. He tested the soil and was satisfied with the firmness of it. He carried his knife over his shoulder, holding it with one hand and distractedly winding the cloth around the tang, as it kept undoing itself.

There were quite a few comments about the pale skinned kid, but even more from the female front about what they would like to do with him. Or to him, in some cases. Pale as he was, except for the darker, reddish tone his face was acquiring after days travelling the wasteland, he was somewhat wiry but well built. He looked around to the expectant faces, and then his eyes caught a glimpse of the two women in white. Loly and Menoly.

They were both at the railing of the balcony, and looking at him _very_ intently. Yemon couldn't quite make what they were saying, but they didn't stop looking at him while talking.

A noise brought him back to reality. Metallic clanking noises and scrapes, and the gate where the beasts were supposed to come from started to open. He grabbed the tang with both hands, as far away from each other as possible, and adopted his ready stance, weapon held high and outwards at shoulder length in diagonal position.

He was expecting a couple of radscorpions. Instead, a large brown skinned beast came rambling out. It was about a head taller than Yemon, brown skinned and with a face that looked almost like a demon, with a wide lipless grin of sharp teeth under a white mask with two small horns protruding from the forehead. Its arms were very long, and as it walked, it almost dragged the end of two hands with extremely long and sharp-looking claws. A lizard-like tail twitched behind it as it was dragged along. And a large gaping hole in the middle of its chest.

For a moment a hush fell across the arena. Then the shouting started again, louder than before. Bets were made and promises of caps exchanged hands as the bookie shouted the odds.

They were giving twenty to one on the _deathclaw._

_Son of a... Are they taking me for a ride? Like hell!_

Yemon looked at the beast for a few moments, and realized the shining red eyes behind the mask were looking back at him too. Those eyes looked a bit too smart for Yemon's comfort.

_What the hell am I doing here? I should be looking for the chip for the vault, not risking my life for... Well damn, that's loser's talk, I've got to do this for Arisawa-san. Gran gran would kick my ass if I told her about this and finished the story with "and that's when I turned tail and ran away."_

Yemon grinned, a small grin nobody was able to see. With his resolve steeled, his reiatsu stabilized itself as he concentrated and prepared for battle. It didn't matter whether he was fighting a person, a hollow, or a monster that he couldn't even begin to classify no matter how much he tried. Battle required the same of him, to empty himself and follow the flow of his awareness. It was second nature when he was in the Vault, it was even more natural to him out there in the wasteland.

He suddenly disappeared and with a single bound of Hyrenkyaku appeared on the left side of the deathclaw. The beast reacted so fast it almost caught Yemon by surprise; his attack was met with the right claws scraping over the metal with a horrible grinding noise, and he was forced to jump back when it made a second attack with its left. Yemon glanced at the blade and saw four deep scrapes along the side where the claw had hit it.

_Those things are as sharp and hard as steel blades, bloody hell._

He didn't have much more time to consider the circumstances. The deathclaw came rushing forward with an amazing speed, without even having to use shunpo or sonido, or whatever a half-hollow beast from hell was supposed to use. It was incredibly fast, propelling itself with long powerful strides of its strong legs. Yemon ducked under the attack, and as he prepared to rush forward with a thrusting attack under the beast's guard, he had to roll away when it brought its claw within an ace of slicing his back on the return. As soon as he was on his feet, he jumped forward with Hyrenkyaku, trying to disorient the beast. It was enough to give him time to compose his guard again, but not more.

_Calm down. It's fast but it's full of openings. It's just a beast. You can do this._

His reiatsu, which had been fluctuating during the fight, stabilized again. The next exchange was another empty one, with Yemon dodging the deathclaw's attack by using Hyrenkyaku to go over the deathclaw's arm, but failing to strike with the downwards slash when he was forced to block the beast's quick counter. Another hand of scratches on the knife was all he got.

_I don't have enough reach. I wish the knife was a bit longer._

As he was thinking that, jumping back to gain some distance and to avoid the lashing of the tail, he caught a glimpse of the bottom end of his knife, with the length of cloth fluttering along. A plan quickly formed in his head, making him grin.

When the deathclaw started charging again, Yemon threw his knife at it, grabbing the end of the cloth as he did. The beast swatted it away with ease, using its right claw, and as soon as it did, Yemon pulled hard at the cloth, pulling the knife back as he rushed forward. The deathclaw didn't manage to react to a second attack coming from the exact same direction as well as when Yemon had been trying to counter from close inside its reach, and he was treated to a very loud crunching noise as his vertical slice, made with all the power he could muster, cut the beast's right arm clean at the elbow.

Yemon didn't even hear the mixture of screams from the audience. All he could hear was the roar of pain and anger of the deathclaw. He wasn't even disturbed by the fact that he found the sound exhilarating.

He stepped away and readied his guard normally again. Now there was a weak side on the beast's own guard, so it should be easier to deal with it.

While he was thinking about that, instead of focusing on the fight, the deathclaw picked its own arm and threw it at Yemon. The sudden attack while he was distracted caught him by surprise, and as he hit the arm away with his sword, the deathclaw came charging hot on its metaphorical heels.

_Smart girl._

Yemon dodged under the left claw attack and pushed forward with his knife held in front of him. As he cut through the deathclaw's left leg, he felt a spike of searing pain tearing through his back. He screamed in pain and nearly fell down, only just managing to stay upright enough to jump away with Hyrenkyaku. As he landed he fell to his knees, and looking back he saw the deathclaw had fallen too after he nearly severed its leg.

He stood up and tried to grab his knife with both hands, but his back gave him a new shot of pain when he tried his left arm.

_Okay, one arm then._

Without hesitation, he jumped forward again with Hyrenkyaku, and appearing on the deathclaw's left side, he raised his knife holding the tang at the base of the blade, and levering it against his arm to keep it from falling back. The result was that he looked like he was holding his arm up to point at the sky with his knife. With a swift movement, taking advantage of the weapon's weight, he brought the blade down and cut the deathclaw's left arm even as the beast was trying to cut him down from its difficult position.

Cutting its head off took a whole three slices to the neck. The first one made it scream and trash about, the second severed the spine and stopped all its movements, and the third finally managed to separate it from the body.

Yemon stabbed down at the ground with his knife and used it to stabilize himself, and then looked up at the crowd. Most were looking down with a shocked expression. A few, very few, were smiling and shouting and cheering in happiness. It was easy to see who had bet on him for that combat.

Up at the balcony, Loly and Menoly were looking at him with shocked expressions.

"It... It's not possible..." Loly said, tightening her grip on the rail.

"No... No, it can't be. You're right, it's not him."

"But..."

"It's not him!"

Loly made the smallest of gestures as if she was about to jump over the railing, and at that moment Menoly put a hand on her shoulder.

"What are you doing?"

"It's fine, look."

Yemon had placed his knife on his right shoulder again, and was walking out of the arena with an uneasy step.

"He's not even looking at us. He doesn't know who we are."

"So," Loly looked at Menoly, "are you sure it's not him?"

"Completely," the short-haired blonde smiled.

Down at the arena, Yemon walked out carrying his clothes and personal effects in a bundle, following the self-identified doctor of the camp, a woman that looked like she was in her mid forties, with unkempt salt and pepper hair, a sun weathered narrow face with sharp features and dark eyes. She was grinning madly and constantly talking about the killing she had made on the fight.

"I knew I could count on you! Hah! Should have seen the look on Hayme's face when I went to collect my caps. Can you believe he tried to talk his way out of it because it was only a young deathclaw? Hahaha! Come on darling, we're here, don't bleed all over my floor now."

Yemon reeled involuntarily when he took his first step inside the doctor's office. It was dark, dusty, and there were dark spots and blotches everywhere.

_How can someone call themselves a doctor and keep their place like this?_

"Come on, don't be shy! Lay down on the bed there, I'll have you stitched up in no time. Free of charge, it's been a great payday for me already."

To his relief, he saw the woman put a pair of clean gloves and pour strong-smelling disinfectant on a small basin with the stitching kit. He laid down and tried his best to relax while the doctor worked his cuts. It took a while, but she worked fast, and she was definitely skilled. She finished with an injection, which startled Yemon.

"There you are darling. Gave you a small stim shot to help it along, give it a week and you can take the stitches off. Now where is the plaster... Haru! Where the devil are you?"

A door opened, and Yemon saw a short male slave come through it at great speed.

"Yes mistress, I'm here mistress!"

"Where the blazes did you put the bandages?"

"Right here mistress!" He hurriedly opened a cabinet, "mistress said to clear the place, so I put them all together here, mistress."

Yemon ground his teeth together while the doctor finished bandaging him up, trying not to look at the slave. The place disgusted him, and not because of all the grime and old blood in the room.

"Great, you're good as new!" The woman slapped Yemon's butt, which startled him even more, and started talking in a low, purring voice, "and now that we're done, what about you and me..."

They were interrupted by a loud crashing noise. They both turned and saw that the slave had dropped the basin with the kit that the woman had been using. Like the flick of a switch, she suddenly flew off the handle, and rushed at the slave, who crouched on the ground covering his head.

"I'm sorry mistress! I'm very sorry! I'll clean it up immediately mistress!"

"You useless piece of shit!" She shouted, kicking the man until he fell down, "why do I ever keep trash like you around!" She continued kicking him, ignoring the pleas for mercy from the small man, "I ought to blow your fucking head off and find someone else!"

Yemon stood up like a flash, and for a moment his eyes looked at the woman like he was looking at a target for his sword. The killing intent was so intense that she froze completely. Yemon managed to control his temper before she had turned.

"Thank you, but I think I should be going now," he said, as he started to dress himself.

She looked at him and then shot a venomous glance at the slave.

"Start cleaning up now," she ordered, and then suddenly shouted when the man tried to stand up, "don't knock the stimpacks over you moron!"

_Stimpacks?_

"Stimpacks?" Yemon asked loudly, "real ones? Could I buy some off you?"

"Oh darling, these are real all right, the mistresses can catch hollows whenever they feel like it."

Yemon wasn't sure what she meant by that, but decided to let her continue.

"I can't quite sell them to anyone. But say, since it's you," she approached him and playfully passed a finger over his chest, "I'll sell you one, five hundred caps. And you know, maybe less..."

She licked her lips as she passed her whole hand now down Yemon's chest and abdominals. Yemon suppressed his shudder and nodded.

"Five hundred caps it is, and well," he took the woman's hand away from himself, "as for this, maybe next time, I have to get going."

"What's the hurry darling? We've got time, I bet you won't be in a hurry if you let me."

"Ah, you see," he managed a smirk that he hoped didn't look like a grimace, "I don't do things in a hurry, when I start something I like to take my time to finish it."

"Hmmmm, that sounds good," she sighed, "well next time then, but I'll hold you to that," she winked, "you'll be back soon?"

"I'll _definitely _come back to finish _business_."

He grinned this time, and he didn't care what the grin looked like because he was definitely coming back to that place and burning it to the ground if it was the last thing he ever did.

_After I find the chip. Vault first, then I can do whatever I want._

When he left the clinic, he was pleasantly surprised to see Gregory waiting for him with Tandi. The poor girl looked even more fragile and scared out in the open, constantly wringing her hands and avoiding looking at anyone for more than a fraction of a second.

"Well here you go, promise is a promise, you definitely earned it, Kurosaki-dono."

"Yeah, that. It didn't look like a radscorpion to me."

"Quality merchandise, quality battle. Only fair, my friend."

_I'm not your friend. I'm the one who's going to kill you the next time he sees you, you bastard._

"I'll be on my way now."

"Oh, before I forget, the key to the collar, in case, you know, it gets in the way," he grinned malevolently, "remember no uncollared slaves while in the White Tusk, when you're in the wasteland do as you please."

"Right," Yemon adjusted his blade, and quietly cursed at the sharp pain from his back, "I'll be seeing you, Gregory."

"Take care my friend!"

Yemon took Tandi's hand, holding it a bit too tight, and pulled her away. He couldn't wait to be out of that place, so he kept pulling hard as he walked as fast as he could, even when Tandi stumbled or lost her footing. She didn't complain once.

When they reached the outcropping where Yemon had placed his goggles, he hid from the slaver guard's view behind the rocks and, letting go of Tandi, he pounded the rock with his fists, putting his head to it afterwards and breathing heavily.

"Those... Fucking... Bastards..."

Tandi looked at him trying to contain his fury with some trepidation, and she nearly jumped when he turned to look at her. But his expression softened up and he smiled.

"Don't worry Tandi," he said, and hearing her name from his lips made her jump in place, "I'm here to rescue you. Your father sent me."

It took her four tries to speak.

"D... Dad? Dad did?"

When she had finally taken that in, she suddenly smiled and rushed to glomp Yemon, and at that moment he remembered Aradesh's description of his daughter's smile.

_Well, he was right after all. It is a beautiful smile._

"I'm... I'm so glad! I'm so happy! I can't believe this!"

"Shhh, Tandi, take it easy, don't draw any attention."

"Eep!" She let go and jumped back, putting both hands to her mouth, not managing to hide the fact that she was giggling, "I'm sorry!"

"That's okay," Yemon took the goggles and put them back on and, after a few moments waiting for his eyes to adjust, he smiled satisfied, "damn I missed this. Still haven't gotten used to the sun."

"Eh?"

"Long story, I'll tell you later. First, let's get rid of that stupid collar."

Tandi turned at Yemon's indication and he put the key in the lock. He stopped mid-turn when he heard a _click_ sound that didn't quite seem to fit with a lock opening.

"What's happening?" Tandi asked.

"Shh! Don't move!"

She froze instantly, prompted by the urgency in Yemon's voice.

"Okay..."

"Did they tell you what these collars do?"

"N-No. Why?"

Yemon examined it closely. There was something rigged to it. He wondered why a simple collar like that would need cables, or what the bulging thing next to it was.

For about two seconds, before he realized.

"Oh you complete bastards..."

Tandi took a sharp breath in, unsure of why Yemon was cursing, but sure that it couldn't be good news.

"Tandi? Listen carefully."

"Okay..."

"Don't move a muscle. I'm going to tell you as soon as I've disarmed this thing, you'll duck _very_ slowly, and when you're free of the collar, I want you to run as fast as you can. But we may get caught in the blast."

She gulped noisily, but Yemon reassured her with two simple words.

"Trust me."

The mechanism was already live, so the only thing he could do was try to delay the explosion. Holding the key in place _very_ firmly, he used his teeth to pull the small thin chain at the end of the key, and after several tries he peeled enough of the cables to use that chain as a bypass. If it was conductive enough, it should be enough.

Holding both ends of the chain with both hands, he finished unlocking the collar turning the key with his teeth, and very slowly pulled it apart.

It didn't explode.

"Okay, start ducking while I move the collar, very slowly... That's good... Run."

She didn't need to be told twice, as soon as Yemon signalled, she lunged forward and pushed away as fast as her legs would carry her. Yemon moved very slowly towards the rocky outcropping and, finding a suitable place to lay down the collar., he prepared to jump away with Hyrenkyaku as he let go of the collar.

A fraction of a second later he appeared right on top of Tandi, placing his arms around her protectively as the collar went off in a disturbingly large explosion, sending bits of gravel all the way to where they were.

Neither of them moved for a few moments. Yemon was pressing Tandi against him tightly, until she started squirming uncomfortably. Yemon's arms were trembling in rage.

_"What the fuck... Is wrong... With this place..."_ He muttered.

There were some shouts in the distance, which spurred Yemon into action. Throwing Tandi over his shoulder, much to the girl's surprise, he pushed forward with the fastest Hyrenkyaku he could muster.


	8. Awakenings

"What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday, and our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow. Our life is the creation of our mind."

- **Buddha.**

* * *

><p>Yemon didn't know how long he had been running, all he knew is that he couldn't make a single Hyrenkyaku more. As he landed trying to do one step too many, he fell forward and crashed on his face, sending Tandi rolling forward and kicking up a huge cloud of dust that hid them both for several seconds. She coughed and moaned softly as she stood up, and quickly rushed towards Yemon, kneeling besides him. His shoulders heaved as he panted loudly, making a high-pitched noise as he struggled to get air past a constriction in his throat.<p>

"Say, are you okay? I told you I can run, not as fast as that but you're going to hurt yourself!" She put her hand on Yemon's back, but quickly took it off when he winced in pain, "sorry!"

"We have..." he struggled to talk, "to go..."

Tandi looked back in the direction of the slavers camp, which had been lost in the distance, and shuddered in dread.

"Are they still after us? I can't feel anything coming, but I don't know, all I could feel when I was there were those two women... Brrrr, they gave me the creeps those two. Say, can you feel anything? Are you like those raiders? I think they can feel people too, even if they're not strong. Me? Heck, I can feel nothing other than when something real bad is close. There was this time when... Hey, are you okay or not?"

Yemon was struggling to stand up, and as soon as he was on his own two feet, wobbly and unsure, he grabbed Tandi's hand and pulled at her, starting to walk forward. Tandi pulled back, and Yemon fell on his back with a yelp of pain.

"Aw, dammit. I'm sorry okay? Say, why are you in such a hurry anyway? If they're not after us, we can just walk back. I can find some food if you want, and you have water too."

"I have to get you back..." Yemon said, struggling to stand up again, "I have to see Arisawa-san," he turned towards Tandi, and she saw his face had a rather vacant look, as if he was struggling to stay focused, "I have to get out of here..."

"I don't think you're fit to go anywhere."

"I have to get out of here... I have to find that chip and get out of here..."

Tandi raised an eyebrow as she looked at Yemon, thinking that the guy was losing it. She stood up, grabbed his hand and dragged him away, taking advantage of the fact that he could hardly struggle without falling down again. She found a shady spot behind some rocks, and pushed him down on his butt.

"Wait a second... Here," she said, grabbing the knife on his back and putting it aside, unslinging the canteen form his shoulder afterwards.

"What are you doing... We have to go..." Yemon insisted, only to be hushed by Tandi.

"Seriously, you're not going anywhere like that. Now, lay down and stop making trouble," she pushed him to lay down on his right side, right arm tucked under his head, and without warning promptly dumped some water on his head.

"Ah!" Yemon almost jolted up, but the pain stopped him.

"You're way overheated. Say, you haven't been out in the sun much, have you? The wasteland's pretty rough. Not that I have been out of the village much myself, mind you, but it's hard even there. I love hearing about other places, you know, but it's just not for me, I don't think I'll even leave Shady Sands. Once we get back I mean. It's quite an adventure here, if I wasn't with you I don't think I'd be this happy."

She rambled on an on, and Yemon looked at her with a mixture of surprise and disbelief. It hadn't been particularly long since she was having a hard time at the slavers' camp, and now she was running motormouth style with a big smile on her face.

_Yes, great smile too._

"So that's why I said 'no thanks'. Dad was not too happy about it, but hey, it's not like I'm going to marry someone just because dad wants me to! Seth was okay with that though, he's not a bad guy. I know, I know, there's not much choice in Shady Sands to begin with, but hey, a girl's gotta be true to her heart, even out here. Say, are you feeling better already? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Uh... Yeah, I'm better," he admitted, because it was true, "you seem a lot more upbeat now."

"Why of course! It was like a nightmare and it's turned into a great adventure! Haven't you heard? My first time leaving the village! I mean, true, I made a pretty rotten start of it, but now that I've thought about it, hey, I've been quite lucky, thanks to you too."

Yemon started to stand up once more, and once more Tandi stopped him.

"Seriously, what's the big hurry? You're all '_I have to go, I have to go_', what's going on? They're not after us, are they? I asked you before I think, did you answer? Sorry, it's just..."

"No, not that I can feel anyway."

"There you go, so just relax, don't go dying of heatstroke on me now. I don't even know where we are. Um, say, do _you_ know where we are?"

Yemon raised an eyebrow and took a look at his Pip-boy (and boy, did it hurt to raise his left arm in that awkward position). He had kept a good course in his rush.

"We can get to Shady Sands in about two or three hours," he lowered the Pip-boy and looked at Tandi, who seemed to be giving him a rather inquisitive look, "without rushing, normal pace."

"Great! There you go, still plenty of light left, we'll make it before nightfall."

"Right."

Tandi moved and sat by Yemon, next to where he was resting his head. Without warning, again, she dumped some water on his head, giggling.

"Oi!"

"Come on, you need to cool down!" She giggled again.

"I'm already cool enough."

"Right, right. Say, are you going to tell me why you're in such a hurry?"

Yemon was silent for a few seconds before speaking again.

"I need to find a spirit particle filter chip," he said simply.

"Hmmm, that doesn't tell me much. Is that something for your village? Where are you from?"

"Yeah, it's for my village. Your father seems to know about it though, you don't know anything?"

"Nu-huh," she shook her head, though Yemon couldn't see it, "dad doesn't tell me much about the outside world. He's always saying we need to be protected inside the village. Yeah right, caged is more like it."

"He's right," Yemon murmured.

"Really? But... Well, I can't say I liked the raiders, but you're okay, and we're having an adventure out here. I bet it's nothing like that to you, but for me, this is the closest I've ever been to one! I have never been to a city either, I wish I could see one some day. Dad would freak out if I told him this, you know."

Yemon let Tandi ramble some more, but for all the fancy dream yarn she seemed to be spinning, yemon couldn't help but agree with Aradesh.

"This place sucks," he finally said, unaware that he had spoken that out loud.

"What was that?"

"Oh?" Yemon asked, and realized what he had said, "sorry, just agreeing with your dad. The wasteland sucks. I want to get out of here."

"It's not so bad. Say, why..."

"Not so bad?" Yemon suddenly sat up, visibly annoyed, "what's not so bad about it? Raiders? Slavers putting explosive collars on their slaves? The hollows and other assorted monsters eating humans? What! There's nothing good out here! Nothing!"

Tandi had subtly started to lean back while Yemon freaked out, and it took him several moments to realize he had completely killed her positive bubbly energy. She was looking somewhere between sad and hurt. She didn't look like she wanted to speak again.

"What?" Yemon asked.

"Well, I'm sorry we're so bad, okay?" She finally said, turning away from him.

For a moment, Yemon looked completely blind-sided.

_Well shit, and now she's getting moody too? I wasn't talking about her!_

"I wasn't talking about you! Unless you go around eating people or turning them into slaves."

Yemon waited, but Tandi didn't say anything. He furrowed his brow and sighed, exasperated. He took a big sip from the canteen and tried to calm his hunger with that.

_Dammit I'm starving._

"Okay, let's go already Tandi," he said standing up.

He grabbed her hand, but she shook it free and started walking in the direction Yemon had pointed. They spent several minutes like that, in complete silence. Until Tandi muttered something.

"What was that?" Yemon said, not turning.

"I said not everyone is an asshole like you."

Yemon didn't stop walking, but turned to shoot her an annoyed look. She continued talking.

"I thought you were nice, but you're just like dad said about outsiders. Well, Shady Sands is nothing like that, all the people are really nice, and we care about each other. They're nothing like you!"

She sped up and walked past Yemon, fuming all the way. Yemon kept an eye on her stiff back as they walked along for several minutes, until his head cleared enough to realize what he had been saying all along.

"I'm sorry."

Tandi jolted in surprise and turned towards him, eyebrows high and eyes wide open.

"Eh?"

"I'm sorry I spoke ill of you and your friends. Well, it's not like they've been very kind to me, but..." He looked at Tandi, and realized she was making a face again, "and here I go again, sorry. It's just that all this is getting to me."

"All what?"

"Well, the raiders, and the slavers, and the... Um, the hollows I guess."

"You don't have these in your village?"

"Well, no, it's very well hidden."

"Aah, that must be nice. But I don't know, it's boring enough in Shady Sands, I don't know if I could stand being even more caged! There may be advantages to not getting kidnapped by raiders though. Say, what about radscorpions, or mole rats, do you get them in your village too? Radscorpions are the worst, they're big and have pincers, and have this poison that can kill you if it's not treated properly."

Yemon smiled. Motormouth was at it again, all was good.

They arrived at Shady Sands when the sun was already approaching the horizon. The guards were first surprised, and then relieved, when they saw them coming from the distance. When they finally made it to the gate, there was a bit of a crowd waiting for them, including Aradesh.

"Dad!" Tandi shouted, rushing to hug her father.

"We were beginning to wonder, it took you long enough," he said coolly, looking at Yemon.

_Yep, that's him all right._

"Stuff happened," Yemon said simply, then continued walking towards the clinic without another word.

"Dad! Be nicer! He rescued me, you know."

"Yes, of course, that was part of our agreement," Aradesh responded.

"Agreement?"

Yemon didn't hear the rest of the discussion, he entered the clinic directly, and almost caught the doctor by surprise.

"Doc! How is Arisawa-san?"

"Ooh, you're back. Well, good news, she's stable, so she should be fine."

"Yes!" Yemon shouted, punching up with his fist in the air, "oh right," he searched inside his sleeve, and pulled out the stimpack he had bought, "I managed to get my hands on this, I think your wife said it'd help. It's a stimpack right?"

"Hm? Only one?"

"Uh..."

"Yeah, it should help if it's not fake, lemme check..."

The doctor took the stimpack and carefully made a very slight pressure on the release valve. A drop of white liquid fell to his finger. He then too a scalpel from the nearby table.

"Arm."

"Huh?"

"Let me see your arm."

Uh, okay..."

Yemon raised his right arm, and the doctor quickly made a small incision with the scalpel. Yemon yelped, more in surprise than pain.

"Son of a... What the! Uh... What the hell?"

As soon as the doctor put the drop of white liquid on the wound, it started closing.

"It's the real deal."

"What the hell is in that thing?"

"You really don't know? Hah! I guess not everyone can afford one of these. Stimpacks are made by extracting the essence of hollows with high-speed regeneration. So you can imagine why they're an expensive commodity." He smirked.

"Wow, that's... Nuts."

"Still, with just one... It'll probably be enough to fix the bones. Since you're here, I'll show you how to use it."

_He seems in a good mood._

They entered the second room in the clinic, where Tatsuki was hooked up to a drip, covered in bandages and with a cast on her arm.

"Oi girl, you've got a visitor!" Razlo called.

Tatsuki opened her eyes slowly, and moved her head to glance around as if in a daze. Her eyes fell on Yemon, and after a few seconds she smiled.

"Ichigo..."

"Ah, you still saying that, Arisawa-san? It's Yemon, I can't believe you forgot about me already."

"Yemon, right," she looked at him with heavy, half-lidded eyes.

"You're really out of it, aren't you?"

"It's okay... I'm fine," she mumbled.

"Oi kid, take a look. When you want to heal a body part, make sure you deliver it intramuscularly."

Yemon nodded, looking at Razlo work. He separated the bandages on Tatsuki's chest and pushed with the stimpack, stopping when the gauge on top of it reached half-empty. He then pushed the arm cast up some, and finished delivering the stimpack.

"And if you just want to heal several smaller injuries, do it intravenously."

"Got it, thanks doc!"

"Hah! No need to thank me, Aradesh's paying for all this! Oh, and you can take that pack and that gun of yours back if you want, there ain't anything there that's of much use anyway."

Razlo laughed heartily, and Yemon couldn't help but smile. He looked down at Tatsuki to see if the stimpack was having an effect. Her heavy lidded eyes appeared to be staring into space with a half-open mouth, and a small drop of drool started running off its side.

"Arisawa-san? Are you okay?"

Yemon shook her, but there was no response. Her breathing seemed very slow too. It was then that he caught a glimpse of something under the pillow, and when he lifted it, he saw several syringes had been tucked underneath.

"Oi doc, what's this?"

"What?" Razlo looked, and immediately cursed in such a way Yemon almost blushed, "when did she get a hold of those? Damnation!"

He scrambled out calling for his wife, and rushed back in with a bottle of oxygen and several tubes.

"What's going..."

"Out of the way!" Razlo ordered, "you didn't tell me she was an addict kid, shit she's shot two doses in."

"A... ddict?"

Razlo worked fast, pushing a tube down Tatsuki's throat and hooking it to a breather with the oxygen bottle. The nurse came in quick with a large drip bag of something yellowish.

"What did she do?" Yemon asked again.

"She's shot herself two doses of Med-X. I can't believe this, it's been just a day since I gave her one. Why didn't you tell me she was hooked, kid?"

"I... Didn't know..."

"Fine, fine, now get out, we've got work to do. "

"But..."

"Out!" Razlo shouted, ending the discussion.

Yemon left the clinic almost in a daze, carrying his pack without bothering to wear it properly. It was already dark outside, and his stomach growled in protest for being neglected for so long. For a moment he felt somewhat dizzy.

"There you are!"

Yemon looked up and saw Tandi looking at him.

"Oh, hi."

"Hows your friend? Dad told be about her. Say, did he really made all that fuss to get you to go rescue me? Hah! That's so like him, I think he's just bored and likes to make things complicated. Say, how is she?"

"Not good..." Yemon mumbled, and a ferocious growl from his stomach interrupted them.

"Aah! Come on, let's get you some food. She'll be fine, Razlo's actually really good you know."

Tandi led Yemon to the tavern, and after sitting him down at one of the large tables, she happily skipped to the kitchen to get him some food. Almost immediately, Aradesh made his way to the table and sat down in front of him.

"Tandi explained to me the circumstances of her rescue. I am quite grateful. I believe I haven't heard your full name yet."

"Kurosaki Yemon," he answered.

"Thank you, Kurosaki Yemon."

Yemon looked at Aradesh, and realized he wasn't actually mocking him. The _thank you_ had come out so forced it almost felt as if he'd had to pull a tooth out to say it.

"Now, to the second part of our business. As promised, I will cover all expenses for the treatment of your friend," Aradesh looked at Yemon, and the latter nodded, "and there is the matter of the spirit particle filter."

"That's right."

Aradesh looked at Yemon for several seconds, making him somewhat uncomfortable but failing to force him to look away.

"I want you to understand, Kurosaki Yemon, this is not something I am normally inclined to discuss," he paused, and Yemon nodded, "very well. Let me tell you about Shady Sands, then. This settlement was established by the survivors from the place known as Vault 12. I see the name is familiar to you."

There was an edge to Aradesh's voice when Yemon reacted in moderate surprise to the revelation.

"Yes... I went there when you kicked me out last time. Not much to see in there, though."

Aradesh took a deep breath, and then continued.

"At the time of the Cataclysm, the Beast from Vault 12 captured many people by pretending to offer them shelter from the catastrophe that was befalling mankind. He had his pick of volunteers, of course, but what nobody knew was that this... This... _Monster_ just intended to capture people as guinea pigs for his experiments. Ostensibly, he intended to anticipate the effect the Cataclysm would have on humans before it actually happened. Thus, people were exposed to spirit particles in different ways, and had... _things_ done to them. Many of them would die, some would simply change."

"By die you mean... _Die, _or turn into spirits?"

"_Die,_" Aradesh replied gravely, "most of mankind would _die _during the years of the Cataclysm."

Yemon nodded and filed the information away. He had assumed the Cataclysm had happened rather suddenly, not that it would take years.

"I was born inside Vault 12. I never met my parents, and grew inside a cell with other children like myself. By the time I was a teenager, I couldn't stand it any longer. Many of us broke out and escaped."

_How?_

Yemon wanted to ask that, but Aradesh didn't look like he was willing to elaborate. Judging by his expression, he was reliving many of the old feelings from that time, digging in an old wound that never quite managed to heal.

"The majority of those who escaped would soon die of spirit particle exposure. Those of us who survived, changed, into spirits. We found remnants of the old civilization, prepared and armed ourselves, and finally waited for the chance to strike at the Vault and end the suffering of our people."

"But... If they couldn't survive outside..."

"Yes," Aradesh shot Yemon a ferocious look, "but at one point, Kurosaki Yemon, certain things have to be brought to an end no matter the cost. This was one of them."

"What happened to this... What was his name... Kurotsuchi character? The Overseer of the vault?"

Yemon was suddenly aware of how quiet the tavern had gone. He looked around, and noticed many pairs of eyes fixed on him. When he looked at Aradesh, he shook his head and talked in a flat voice.

"We do not say that name out loud, Kurosaki Yemon."

"I… See..."

"The _Beast_ was not there at the time. It is a powerful demon, Kurosaki Yemon, we couldn't hope to defeat him. We made our strike when the opportunity presented itself to destroy his work and end the suffering. That was all we could hope to achieve. We do not know what became of it, but for all we care, nothing would please us more than to never hear from it again."

Yemon was silent for a few moments, thinking.

"My dilemma is that I need to find a spirit particle filter chip."

"_Why?_"

There was definitely a sharp edge to Aradesh's question, and the look on his face was very intent. Yemon weighted his options, and decided to trust him with at least that much.

_And once again I'm doing exactly the opposite of what Takeda told me to do. I hope these guys won't be trouble for the Vault. They shouldn't be._

"Aradesh," Yemon spoke softly, leaning forward over the table, "have you noticed anything peculiar about me?"

"Like what?" He responded in kind, leaning forward too.

"Like... The fact that I'm still human?"

Aradesh narrowed his eyes as he looked at Yemon, but said nothing.

"Like the fact that I know nothing about the wasteland? Or that I'm really pale? Or that the sun bothers me?"

Aradesh continued to look at him, but his eyes opened wide with the dawn of understanding. Yemon nodded.

"It's nothing like Vault 12, I can assure you. Kur... The Beast had nothing to do with it. It's free, quiet, secret, and I'd like to keep it that way. And I _need_ to find that chip for my people to survive. So, do you know where I can find one? Any clues? Anything?"

Aradesh keep quiet, deep in thought, even as Tandi returned, putting a plate with a simple cabbage and corn stew next to Yemon. She was about to say something, but Yemon gestured for her to stay silent, not taking his eyes from her father. When he finally looked up, Yemon _almost _thought he looked like he had mellowed out slightly.

"Very well, I believe you, Kurosaki Yemon. However... There is nothing I can say about where to find a chip. We did our best to destroy every piece of equipment in Vault 12. I do not know if or where the Beast may have had other vaults."

For a moment, Yemon looked without saying anything. Then, without warning, he let his head fall to the table, hitting it hard with his forehead.

"Dammit."

_Bam. Bam._

"Damn!"

"Kurosaki-san! Stop that!" Tandi reproached him, grabbing him by the shoulders.

"I guess I can't go home yet." Yemon said, looking up at a very confused Tandi.

"You're just hungry. Come on, eat, now that the raiders are not going to bother us, we'll have plenty of food to spare," she pushed the plate in front of Yemon, and after only a few moments hesitation, Yemon took the spoon and went at it with obvious enthusiasm, "say, where are you going to stay tonight? Dad, don't look at me like that! Why don't we let him stay at the empty house by Seth's? That way he can wait for his friend to get better."

"Tandi, calm down," Aradesh said, making Yemon chuckle between bites.

Yemon finished his food far too fast for it to have left him satisfied, but he didn't say anything about seconds. He reached for his caps bag.

"Well, if you can tell me where to go, I think I'm about ready to crash. How much do I owe here?"

"Nothing! It's on me! Well, on dad. Oh come on dad, don't be stingy, I thought you said he was broke."

Yemon laughed heartily and patted the bag.

"Well, I went and got the bully's lunch money," he said merrily, "beat those... raiders..."

He stopped laughing as he remembered the fight with the raiders. Joke or not, he had killed at least one of them.

"What's wrong?" Tandi prompted.

"No, nothing. Just tired."

Not ten minutes later he was laying down on a cot in a dusty room inside a half-demolished house that had been empty for far too long. He tossed around despite his tiredness, going repeatedly over the fight in his head.

_Yes, they were scumbags, they shot first, but... Shit, it's not like those freaking beasts that were killing Arisawa-san. These were people. And I was making jokes about that. Dammit, what's wrong with me._

He managed to steer his thoughts in a different direction when he thought of Tatsuki. He'd have to do something about that, and it was going to be unpleasant.

When Tatsuki opened her eyes, she had no idea where she was. She thought she was in a hospital, but it was instead a room inside a badly maintained dwelling of some sort. She was laying on a less than comfortable cot, and as she looked around, the first thing she saw was a huge handle-less knife with a long piece of cloth around the tang propped against the wall opposite of her. She nearly panicked, but her panic subsided when she saw Yemon sitting on a stool next to her cot.

"You're awake," he said, looking at her very intently.

"Yes," she answered, instinctively preparing to move to a more defensive position. She was aching all over, and her throat was rather hoarse too. She was so focused on Yemon she didn't realize that, despite the pain, both breathing and moving her arm felt fairly normal. A bad twist reminded her of her back, and she winced in pain.

"You know who I am?"

"Yemon, right?"

"Whew," he leaned back and smiled, "for a second I thought you were going to call me Ichigo again."

"What? I told you already, it was a mistake you fool."

"Yeah, yeah, yesterday you called me Ichigo again."

"Really?"

"You don't remember?"

Tatsuki sat back towards the end of the cot, and eyed Yemon with some suspicion. She tried to ignore her back as best she could. When she leaned on her right arm she realized it was not broken anymore, even though it hurt.

"What happened?"

"So you don't remember. You took two shots of this," Yemon showed her an empty syringe of Med-X, "the doctor had to keep you ventilated all night, I didn't even know if you were going to make it."

"So what?" She asked, irritated. Her eyes couldn't move away from the syringe, and she felt her hands trembling, "who the hell are you to judge me?"

"I'm not judging you," he smiled ruefully, "shit, this place's a hellhole, I've had enough of that for a lifetime. But you stole a handful of these, shot yourself with enough to kill yourself, and it's not been a day and you're already like that."

"Like what?" She sniffled and passed a hand under her runny nose. Her trembling had increased, she was beginning to sweat, and she was very, very annoyed, "what the fuck are you saying?"

"I'm saying it's cold turkey time."

Tatsuki reacted as if Yemon had physically slapped her. Surprise, anger, pain, it was all mixed together but nothing compared to the realization of what was about to come.

"Who the hell do you think you are! Get out of my face! I'll-"

She tried to stand up, but her legs wobbled under her and she fell on her back on the cot, prompting a yelp of pain.

"By the looks of it, another two hours and you won't even be able to stand."

Tatsuki shot a venomous glance at Yemon, breathing through clenched teeth. She tried to kick him from where she was laying, but he jumped back and dodged easily enough. In the blink of an eye, he disappeared and reappeared smack in front of her.

"Arisawa-san, we're going to do this, whether you like it or not. I _will _tie you down if I have to."

Tatsuki's angry look changed somewhat. Yemon kept his guard up, but underneath her anger there was a clear note of fear and desperation. She was trembling slightly even though her sweating had increased.

"You have... no idea..." Tatsuki said.

"No, I haven't gone through it. I have seen it before though. You won't think much of it now, but I'll be here with you all the way through."

She started trembling much more violently, and curled up with her around her body, trying to get some warmth. Yemon put his blanket over her shoulders, and she angrily shook them free of his grasp, wrapping the blanket around herself.

She rejected all food he offered, but took his canteen to drink.

"Just my luck, to be rescued by a friggin' messiah," she muttered.

Tatsuki didn't know how long it had been, an eternity and a half, but after hours and hours of sweating, hot and cold flashes, dripping a bucket of snot through her nose and constant, increasing cravings for some Med-X, things took a turn for the worst. She sat up in agony over the pain on her back, and before she knew it her stomach was trying to turn itself inside out. Yemon rushed to her side with a bucket, and as she retched inside over and over, she swatted him aside when he touched her shoulder.

When Yemon left the room to empty the bucket, she fell back on the cot, cold and miserable, kicking with her legs over and over.

"That wasn't very nice," a familiar voice said.

She opened her eyes and saw a teenage girl sitting on the stool next to her. She had long orange hair held with two hair-clips shaped like six-petal flowers, and a round face with brown, slightly downcast eyes. She also had a very considerable bust.

"O... Orihime..."

"Yes, Tatsuki-chan?"

"It... It can't be..."

"What can't be?" She asked again, all smiles.

"You... You're dead..."

"Oh that's right. I'm dead," Orihime said, looking up at the ceiling, "I'm dead, and you're alive. Isn't that right?" She asked the question as she lowered her face towards Tatsuki, and at that moment her eyes darkened as her face morphed into a demonic mask, with an unnatural wide mouth with sharp teeth, "why are you alive... when I'm dead?"

"N... No... NOOO!"

Yemon emptied the bucket in the gutter and pumped some water from the well to wash it. The filter pump was a pain to use when he needed lots of water, but he didn't quite like swishing radioactive water around. He stopped before re-entereing the house to take a deep breath, but Tatsuki's sudden cry of anguish quickly brought him in.

"Arisawa-san!"

"Get away! GET AWAY!"

"Arisawa-san!"

Tatsuki had both hands over her throat, and looked as if she was struggling to choke herself. Yemon grabbed both hands and had to make quite an effort to restrain the small but surprisingly strong woman.

"It huuurts! IT HURTS!" She twisted under Yemon's grasp, trying to hit her back on the cot over and over, "it hurts! I need it! It hurts too much!"

"Stop struggling!" Yemon shouted back, pinning her down even more firmly.

She stopped struggling, and her face twisted into a grimace of pain as she started crying.

"Orihime... I'm sorry... I'm sorry..."

Yemon tucked in the trembling girl again, and wetted a piece of cloth to pass over her forehead. She was mumbling now, and he couldn't make what she was saying, but her crying had stopped at least.

_Worst is still to come, it's just been twelve hours._

When Tatsuki opened her eyes again, she was feeling rather queasy. Stupid Yemon was still sitting next to her bed, looking away.

_Why is his hair orange?_

Suddenly Yemon turned around, and Tatsuki's heart started beating even faster when she realized it wasn't Yemon. Spiky orange hair, brown eyes, a deep scowl on his face...

_Ichigo_.

He stood up and looked at her without saying a word, and from behind him Orihime appeared, with a huge grin on her face. She walked to the head of the cot and, bending down, she held Tatsuki's arms in place. Ichigo's face suddenly got covered by a white and red mask, and after screaming in an ungodly voice, he plunged his hand into her stomach.

Tatsuki screamed in pain, unable to struggle under Orihime's firm grasp. She felt Ichigo's hand digging through her innards, grasping and crushing everything it found. It was agony, a pain so intense she thought she was going to break in two. When she convulsed and blood started to ooze out of her mouth, someone pushed her up roughly from her shoulders and put her face inside a bucket, where she threw up, blood and parts of her own intestines floated in an ungodly pool inside the metallic bucket.

"How can you still try to throw up? You've got nothing in your stomach." Yemon said, leaving the empty bucket by the bed.

Tatsuki didn't answer, she merely laid down again, sweating even more. She was trembling and kicking so much Yemon couldn't manage to keep her covered. It was quite late by the time she fell asleep.

_It won't last though._

"What are you doing!" Tatsuki suddenly shouted, waking Yemon up from his uncomfortable sleep sitting in the corner, "run away! Run! No... Don't do this... DON'T DO THIS!"

Yemon rushed to Tatsuki's side, and found her looking at the ceiling with an expression of horror, hands on her open mouth and tears running down her face.

"Arisawa-san?"

No response. Yemon looked at the Pip-boy and sighed.

_Thirty-six hours. _

"Yemon..."

"Yes?" He immediately perked up, looking at Tatsuki, "what is it?"

"It... It hurts... Can I have it? Please? I swear, it'll be the last time. I swear."

Yemon's face didn't change outwardly, except for a slight movement of the jaw as he clenched it with all his might.

"I'm sorry, Arisawa-san," he finally said.

"Please," she reached out and caressed Yemon's chest, "just one. I'll be good with you. Just one please..."

Yemon let out a string of profanity in a very low voice. He took Tatsuki's hand and put it as gently as he could back on her chest.

"I'm sorry," was all he said.

"You... FUCK YOU!" She shouted, and with an angry gesture, lashed out at Yemon as she turned away, and then yelped in pain when she twisted her back.

There was a soft knock on the door. Tatsuki didn't even move, while Yemon barely opened the door, blocking the entrance completely.

"Yes?"

"Oh, Kurosaki-san," Tandi responded. An uncomfortable silence set, until she rose the tray she was carrying, "I brought some food. How..." She looked at Yemon's face, and her voice lost some liveliness, "how is it going?"

Yemon smiled ruefully, reaching out for the food.

"As well as it can be expected. Thank you, Tandi."

Tatsuki hadn't moved from her spot, wrapped in the blanket and still looking very much in the middle of the bad trip. Yemon sat by he bed and touched her shoulder.

"Tandi brought some food, Arisawa-san. You should eat something."

"Fuck that," she said.

"Come on, it's been like two days since your last meal. Eat."

"Or what, you gonna force me too?"

"Maybe."

She turned and looked at Yemon, who had managed a small grin.

"You think this is funny? Some joke?"

"No, not a joke. I'm smiling because you look like you're feeling better."

"Well I'm not!" She turned on the cot and again yelped in pain, "it fucking hurts! I'm in pain! You have any idea how much it hurts? Do you?"

Yemon didn't say a word. He put the tray of food on the floor, stood up, turned away from Tatsuki, and undoing the top of his Shihakushō, he let it fall to show his back to Tatsuki. The four long cuts that covered most of his left back were somewhat swollen, and looking rather purplish.

"In that account..." He said, getting dressed again. "I _can _say I know how you feel," he took the food again and offered a bowl to Tatsuki, "come on, eat something. You'll be feeling better in a few more hours."

Tatsuki took the bowl and started to eat slowly. The cabbage and corn dish was bland and unappetizing, but with such an empty stomach she soon was spooning it in with real relish. She wasn't halfway though it when suddenly her stomach started making some gurgling noises.

"Damn..."

"Yeah, figures, I'm surprised it didn't come earlier," Yemon said, apparently unfazed, "come on, there's a latrine just behind the house."

The worst of the cold turkey trip passed by the end of the second day, but Tatsuki didn't really feel very energetic for almost a week. The pain of her wounds slowly went away, leaving only dull discomfort; except for the back, that still hurt like crazy. The worst part was having a clear head. Past the dullness of being high on Med-X, or the single-purposed agony of the cravings, now she could think clearly.

And that was what she didn't like.

Yemon knocked on the door and walked in, looking full of energy. On the other hand, after one week cooped into that crabby house Tatsuki still didn't want to step outside.

"Arisawa-san! Good morning. How are you feeling today?"

She didn't answer. She was sitting curled up on the cot, hiding her mough behind her knees, legs bent and pressed against her chest with her arms around them.

"Arisawa-san?"

"Just Tatsuki," she finally answered.

"Eh?"

"I don't want to have to call you Kurosaki..."

"Uh, okay. How are you feeling this morning, Tatsuki?"

"Sober."

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

"It is."

Yemon looked at Tatsuki, who was staring into space. He let her be and sat down on the stool against the wall, flicking through the Pip-boy.

"Yemon..."

"Yes?"

"Do you know..." Her voice faltered.

"I know a lot of things, what do you want to ask?"

She chuckled, much to Yemon's delight.

"Do you know how I got hooked on that stuff?"

"Well... No, not really."

"Came across a merchant in the wasteland. He wouldn't shut up about all the stuff he had, even though I kept trying to ignore him. Finally he challenged me to ask for something he didn't have, and I said '_got anything for pain?_' He gave me six doses of Med-X. And he was right, it made the pain go away."

"What pain?"

_The pain of seeing Orihime agonize and turn to dust in front of my eyes while saving me with her little fairies instead of running away and saving herself. The pain of Ichigo never coming in to rescue us like he always did. The pain of everyone dying and leaving me in this fucking place for all those years. The pain of being alone for years in the dark eating whatever I could find like an animal hiding from the bombs that killed everything again. The fucking pain of living on and on when everyone I cared for is dead._

"Ari... Tatsuki?"

"What are you going to do now?" Tatsuki asked.

"Huh?"

"Weren't you looking for something?"

"Oh, that! Yeah. Well, there's a caravan from Junktown here. Tandi has convinced her father to let them come in and do business, so I'm thinking maybe I could go with them tomorrow to this Junktown, and see if they know anything about the spirit particle filter chip."

"Tomorrow."

"Yeah, they want to spend the night here since it's the first time they trade and all."

Tatsuki was silent for a few minutes.

"I'm going with you."

"Eh?" Yemon suddenly snapped up, surprised.

"Yemon, come here."

"Uh... Okay..." Yemon stood up and walked to her.

"Turn around."

He complied. A moment later, Tatsuki had landed a massive slap on the wounded part of his back, making him howl in pain. He turned around angrily.

"What was that for!"

"You're too naïve! I tell you to come here and turn around, and you just do that! You can't trust people on the wasteland!"

"Why the hell wouldn't I trust you?"

Tatsuki was taken aback by the response, and after a few seconds she suddenly started laughing.

"What..."

"You..." She slowly sobered down, wincing slightly as her back reminded her she was hurt too, "seriously, what am I going to do with you?"

Yemon didn't quite know what was going on inside Tatsuki's head, but he couldn't help smiling.

"You said there's some traders here then."

"Yep."

"See if you can find me some clothes. I want to go home and see if I can find something."

"Hm?"

She distractedly passed her hand over the right side of her hair, where the two hair-clips had been.

"Just something."

"Okay, hold on here."

The only thing the caravan had that would fit Tatsuki's small frame without being _girly,_ something Yemon found out she wasn't particularly fond of, was a small blue and yellow jumpsuit. She wasn't too thrilled about it, but it was sturdy and comfortable, and after she did a few practice kicks she was more approving of its fighting qualities.

Half an hour later they were on their way towards Tatsuki's old hideout. Yemon was carrying the pack and his huge knife, whereas Tatsuki was carrying the water and the revolver. She had been appalled at Yemon's clumsiness handling it, so she had confidently taken gun, holster and bullets.

When they arrived, Yemon was almost dismayed. The shabby shack had been practically blown to bits, with pieces scattered to the four winds. There were many tracks coming and going, some looking human, others less than that. Tatsuki started rummaging through the debris.

"What are we looking for?" Yemon asked, almost making her jump out of her skin.

"My hair-clips." She said. "Two blue hair-clips, shaped like a flower."

"Oh right, I remember those."

"Yeah. They've gotta be around here somewhere. Why don't you look over there?"

"Sure."

Yemon spent quite a while rooting through the rubbish, but didn't find that, or anything else remotely useful. When he turned to ask Tatsuki if she had had any luck, he realized she wasn't there.

"Well damn, what now?"

Tatsuki was sitting on a rock by the river, looking down at the small metallic case in her hands. There were five syringes inside, one of them empty. Her hands trembled as she reached for one of the full ones, taking the needle cap off.

_Just one... Just one and I'm done..._

"Tatsukiiiiii!"

Yemon's voice came from a distance away. She snapped her head up and looked around frantically, but he wasn't anywhere in sight. Her sigh of relief was very heartfelt.

_Just one..._

Her right hand tightened around the syringe, filled with a liquid promise of forgetfulness. Everyone was gone. She was alone. Everyone.

"Arisawa-saaaaaaan!"

_Dammit, call me Tatsuki!_

Her hand opened almost without thought as she focused in the one word she had been repeating to herself.

Everyone.

She looked down at the case and the syringe in her hand. Her heart started racing as her body fought against the mandate of her mind. After she didn't know how long struggling, she put the syringe back in the case, closed it, and with a shout to give herself renewed energy, she threw it as far as she could.

It landed with a soft _plop_ in the water, floating downstream and disappearing into the distance.

"Well, that's a relief. I knew I could trust you, but you really had me on pins and needles there."

Yemon spoke from a few meters behind Tatsuki, walking slowly towards her. When he was next to her, she suddenly gave him an elbow on the stomach.

"Ough! What was that for this time!"

"For being such a doofus! And as you can see, my right arm's feeling fine too."

"What, is it always going to be like this? You hitting me and me taking it?"

"Hah! Feel free to punch me if I start acting like an idiot too!"

"Well, does coming here with an excuse count?"

"It wasn't an excuse," she said, turning away and starting the long walk back, "I really, really want those hair-clips back. But they aren't here."

She walked ahead of Yemon as they climbed up through the ravine. When she reached the top, she shielded her eyes from the sun and cast a glance around the wasteland.

_Orihime... I'm sorry. You saved me, and I threw your gift away like this. I know you wouldn't be mad at me, you are incapable of being mad at anyone. But I'd have disappointed you. And hurt you. I've found a reason to live now. I'm going to help this kid, I know you'd want me to do that too. I feel like I just woke up from a very long dream._

She smirked as she looked at the empty wasteland.

_All right then, made you wait long enough. Give me your worst, you stupid wasteland, _this_ time I'm ready for you._


	9. One Man's Trash is Another's Treasure

"You do not have to depend on any material possessions, they depend on you, you create them, you own the one and only tool of production."

- **Ayn Rand**, _Atlas Shrugged_

* * *

><p>Tatsuki had woken up early and full of energy, her mind churning at good speed and keeping the thoughts about cravings well under control. She was, however, quite surprised when she couldn't find Yemon. He wasn't in the half-demolished house, and he wasn't anywhere in town.<p>

Outside the walls, the caravan was packing up and getting ready to leave.

"Good morning. You have any idea where Yemon is?" Tatsuki asked the guards at the gate.

"Arisawa-san, good morning," Seth replied, "he left at the break of dawn, said he'd be back before the caravan left."

"Really?" Tatsuki looked at the brahmin being laden with goods, at the guards milling about, and continued, "he better hurry then, I don't think they'll be here for long. Oooi!" She called, waving at the caravan driver, "how long until you leave?"

"Soon, about half an hour," the driver called back, and turned to continue directing the men.

"Sheesh, where the heck did Yemon go?"

She went back into the house and packed up the few things that needed to be packed, and after drinking up she filled the canteen with the hand-pumped filter.

_I have no idea what this thing does to the water, but it comes out really, really flat. Better than having to use RadAway regularly I guess, but blargh._

She was more worried by the time the caravan driver called for everyone to begin the march southeast.

"You can't leave yet, Yemon isn't back!" She protested.

"Girl," the driver replied, annoyed, "we are on a schedule here, and the sooner we can all go back, the sooner the guards get paid."

He said the last thing loud enough to be heard, and all the hired guns immediately turned towards their conversation. Tatsuki didn't seem to be intimidated by that one bit.

"We're still not getting there today," she insisted, "it's going to be four days of travel no matter what, and that's assuming we don't find anything on the way. So what's the big deal about waiting?"

"Why the hell should we wait?" A mercenary asked, jumping into the conversation and raising a murmur of assent all around him, "we want to get back and get paid, ain't that hard to understand. Why should we wait for you?"

Tatsuki eyed the man up and down. He was tall and lean, long and dirty blonde hair over a square face with an ugly scar on his left cheek. He was carrying a hunting rifle and wore a light, brown leather armour. The rest of the guards wore similar garb, most of them with antiquated firearms and two of them carrying only spears and knives. There wasn't a single Shinigami in that lot.

"We already told you yesterday," she answered, talking slow and methodically, "if we travel together, that's extra protection both for us and for the caravan."

"Hah!" The man laughed in a hoarse voice, "gonna be a cold day in hell before we need your help, little girl."

Imperceptibly, Tatsuki tensed and flexed her hand and arm muscles, and shifted her weight on her feet., narrowing her gaze as she fixed her eyes on the mercenary. He was a good head and a half taller than her, somewhat lean, and likely to rely on range rather than hand-to-hand skills.

Before she could do anything, she felt a familiar reiatsu approaching rapidly, and a few seconds later Yemon landed with a crash after having pushed his Hyrenkyaku a bit too far for comfort. He took a few moments before struggling to his feet, panting heavily.

"Phew," he spoke between deep breaths, "I thought I wasn't going to make it."

"You were certainly cutting it close!" Tatsuki replied, both annoyed and relieved.

"Can we get a move on now?" Another mercenary asked, to much general assent.

A moment later the caravan started moving, and the last ones lingering were Yemon, Tatsuki and the mercenary she was having the argument with. She held his gaze for a few seconds until he turned to follow the caravan, and even then she watched him as he walked away.

"Did I miss something?" Yemon asked, quickly ducking under the smack Tatsuki had aimed at the back of his head.

"Why the hell were you so late? Were you actually expecting me to hold the caravan up forever?" Tatsuki answered, giving up on smacking him after a second fruitless attempt, consoling herself with merely throwing the pack at him.

"Sorry! It was a bit further out than I remembered, I thought I'd make it with more time to spare," he talked as he adjusted the pack on his back over his oversized knife and dusted himself up, taking a few moments to examine the rips on his clothes, "bit of a waste of time though."

"Right right, anyway let's go," she spurred him, walking after the caravan, "what were you doing anyway?"

"I went to see if I could find your hairclips," Yemon replied as he matched his pace to Tatsuki's.

"Wha? We already searched yesterday, why did you think we may have missed it?"

"Ah well."

Tatsuki eyed Yemon's smiling face suspiciously, and shook her head.

"Yemon, you're as bad as hiding things as Ichigo was," she said as she turned to him, with an annoyed expression, "what were you really doing?"

Yemon looked at Tatsuki out of the corner of his eye for a few seconds before responding.

"I went to check the place where those... What did you call them? Super mutants? The place where they took you."

Tatsuki gasped and stopped on her tracks, as if petrified. She kept looking at Yemon, who didn't even slow down, and was forced to start walking again to keep up with him.

"Are you _insane_?" She very nearly shouted.

"Not at all. The place was empty, well, except for the rotting bodies of the super mutants. Incidentally, they looked rather... _Fleshy_, for monsters that seemed to be part hollow. But it had been stripped bare."

"That's how it goes in the wasteland," Tatsuki said after a pause, "you leave anything out in the open for ten minutes, and a scavenger will swoop in and take it in the blink of an eye. Then they take it to his secret stash, and before you know it some other scavenger has found it and taken it to _his_ secret stash. And so on."

Yemon couldn't help but laugh at that description. Before they could continue, they were interrupted by a yell from some distance behind them.

"Kurosaki-saaaaaan!"

They both stopped and turned to see Tandi running towards them. She was waving vigorously too, and when Yemon waved back, she seemed to increase her pace even more. By the time she got to them, she was almost out of breath.

"I caught you!" She said, smiling, "say, were you leaving without saying goodbye?"

"Ah, well, I kinda got sidetracked and almost didn't make it on time... I wasn't thinking really, sorry!"

"Hah! That's okay," Tandi replied, standing up and, without warning, hugging Yemon and making him wince as she squeezed his back. "Thank you so much for everything!"

"Augh, Tandi," he complained, and the girl let him go with as sudden a decision as when she had decided to hug him, "you're welcome, and thank you too."

"Thank me? Why?"

"You know, when I was getting all depressed about the wasteland, you showed me it's not all bad," he smiled.

"Ah! Haha, really! Say, will you come back sometime? After you find that chip thing you're looking for?"

"Maybe, but I can't promise anything. Now better get back to Shady Sands before your father finds someone else to come and rescue you."

"As if," she giggled, "take care and good luck! Bye Arisawa-san!"

She waved and ran back towards the town, and Yemon looked at her go far longer than Tatsuki, who merely turned around and resumed her march. When Yemon finally caught up to her for a second time, she was quiet and pensive for a while before speaking.

"Yemon..."

"Yes?"

"Ah, well... Thank you," she paused for only a moment, but continued before Yemon could say anything, "for saving me, and everything else."

"It's okay Tatsuki, you saved me first!"

"Yes, but you saved me twice..."

"And you've come with me to help, but hey, who's counting?"

"Yemon!" She looked up, annoyed, "I'm being serious!"

Yemon didn't say anything, merely poked Tatsuki's nose, poked his tongue out at her, and ran away, making her chase after him. When she was almost at arm's length, he pushed forward with Hyrenkyaku and appeared several meters ahead.

"Hey! That's cheating!"

"Haha, under whose rules?"

Yemon turned and ran backwards for a few seconds, letting Tatsuki catch up to him, but when he tried Hyrenkyaku for a second time, he lost his footing on the landing and crashed square on his back, with a grunt of pain and a cloud of dust. After all the running they had caught up with the caravan, and he received a few curious and rather unsympathetic looks.

"What were you trying to do?" Tatsuki asked, looking down at him with her hands on her hips.

"I thought I had this licked," Yemon replied, sitting up slowly, "I guess a few days of practice wasn't enough."

Without warning, Tatsuki placed herself right on top of Yemon, preventing him from standing up.

"Yemon, why did you do that? I was being _serious_."

"I know," he answered, scratching the back of his head, "the thing is, I think I've had about enough seriousness for a while, and I haven't gotten any closer to finding the chip yet. I thought... Bah," he shook his head, "I don't know what I thought. Sorry for being a dick."

Tatsuki blinked twice, took a step back, and offered Yemon a hand to stand up.

"You weren't being a dick, and you know it," she said as he helped him stand, "what _did_ you think I was trying? I really just wanted to thank you."

"At the rate things are going, we're both going to need each other's help a lot before this is over, can we just, dunno, skip the tallies and the seriousness?"

Tatsuki was silent for a while as they walked along, until she finally looked at Yemon and smiled.

"Okay then. We're in this together till the end," she said, changing her smile to a smirk, "and it'll probably take a while, I have no idea where to start."

"It should be four months at most."

"Huh? Why's that?" Tatsuki asked, and waited out; when Yemon didn't answer, she grabbed him by his clothes and forced him to stop, "Yemon, what happens in four months?"

"The vault," he spoke in a soft voice, looking around to make sure nobody could hear him, "will run out of air by then. Maybe a bit more. If that happens they'll have to open the door, and... Well, you know what happens to normal humans out here, don't you?"

"You... You spent almost _two weeks_ just wasting time with me? What the hell is wrong with you!"

"Wasting time?" Yemon asked, dumbfounded.

"For crying out loud, let's go!" She spat, letting go of him and chasing after the caravan at a fast clip.

"Sheesh," Yemon mumbled to himself, chasing after her, "I just don't get women at all."

The caravan stopped only at the end of the day, with just an hour of light left. The brahmin were driven along all day long very expertly, as they looked tired but not exhausted. Yemon himself was quite tired, the long walk without break during the hottest part of the day had been hard for the vault dweller. A large fire was started, and he fell next to it gratefully, still too hot but aware that he'd miss the warmth when the sun was gone. He dropped his pack and let his knife rest besides him.

A moment later, Tatsuki surprised him by grabbing him from behind and pulling the top of his Shihakushō back and down to his waist, trapping his arms with it.

"Hey! Cut it out! What are you doing?" Yemon complained, and winced when Tatsuki started to massage the wound on his back with her fingers, "that hurts, you know."

"It looks much better than the last time you showed me, I was sure it was getting infected."

"Ah, it was," Yemon replied, breathing in relief when Tatsuki let him go, "the crazy doc cleaned it again, and I've been taking antibiotics. Any- Hey, what now?"

"Removing the stitches of course," she said, cutting and pulling them carefully, the first aid kit resting on her lap, "should have done this earlier, you know. Well, this one's stuck now, see what I mean?"

"Aaah, what's that kid, someone gave you a souvenir?" The long haired blonde mercenary Tatsuki remembered too well asked, looking over her at Yemon's wound. His voice was festive and rather condescending, with the hint of bravery that comes with extra helpings of booze.

"Yeah, I was quite lucky too," Yemon replied, completely unfazed by the attention that was being drawn towards him, "that... what did they call it... Oh right, that deathclaw thing was a massive pain in the butt."

If sounds could be made into words, the dictionary would have had that moment of silence as its definition of deafening. A few seconds later the light _shnick_ of Tatsuki removing another stitch broke it, but not a word was said for a few more seconds.

"Are you shitting me kid?" The mercenary finally asked.

Tatsuki couldn't help but smirk at the change she heard in his voice.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"A deathclaw? You're saying you got close enough to a deathclaw for it to scratch your back and lived to tell it?"

"Well, yeah," Yemon replied in a very natural tone, tapping the knife besides him, "can't say the same for the deathclaw tho."

"Hey!" Tatsuki interrupted, shouting at everyone, "anyone got some really strong booze here?"

The heavy mood had been broken, and a humming of murmurs filled the air instead. The blonde mercenary was still standing in place, looking at the wound on Yemon's back with very wide eyes.

"Here ya go girl, gonna drink with me?" Someone said, but Tatsuki just laughed.

"No, no, watch this."

"SONOFABITCH!" Yemon shouted when Tatsuki poured some of the liquor on Yemon's back. She rubbed the wound clean with a gauze, and gave him a slap on the other side of his back when she was done.

"There you go. As I said, you should have removed those stitches earlier, had to disinfect where some got stuck."

She took a swig at the awful stuff, gave a satisfied sigh, and tossed it back to its proprietor. After that, she spent some time packing the first aid kit and organizing the pack itself properly.

"Yemon, you really should take better care of your stuff," Tatsuki said as she worked, "pack things properly so that they don't bang around in the bag so much. Let's have some food, eh? Hey, you can put your shirt back on," she looked at him and, after a moment's hesitation, stifled a giggle, "what a dummy. Ah well, can't be helped."

She took the blanket out of the pack and closed it, placed it next to Yemon and, after carefully pulling his shirt back up, helped the sleeping boy down, with the pack as a pillow and nicely tucked in with the blanket.

"You're such a baby," Tatsuki said, smirking, and munched on the dry rations, "I still can't decide if this is some really nasty stuff or if it's the best thing ever."

In the morning, Yemon came out of sleep slowly, relishing the brief moment between sleep and full consciousness. He had gotten used to sleeping on the ground by then, and it was even comfortable. The air was cold in the stillness of dawn, but it was warm under the blanket. He hugged the source of the warmth, and as he did his hand landed on something soft. It was alluring to the touch, and there was a soft, pleased moan when he grabbed it.

"This is nice," he murmured.

"What is?" Someone murmured back.

His foggy head took a few seconds to recognize Tatsuki's voice. It was very close, sounded just like that soft moan.

Tatsuki.

Close.

_Oh shit!_

Yemon and Tatsuki both awoke fully almost at the same time. Yemon was surprised to find that Tatsuki was curled up next to him under the blanket, but Tatsuki was much more surprised to find Yemon grabbing her left breast and even commenting on _how nice it was._

"What the hell are you doing!" Tatsuki shouted.

"Aaah! Sorry! I'm sorry!" Yemon shouted back, letting go and scrambling back as Tatsuki turned and did the same, eyeing him rather sharply.

"You damn pervert!"

"Me? What the hell! Why were you curled up next to me!" Yemon shouted again.

"I don't know! And it wasn't an invitation to be a pervert! What did you do you last night?" She shouted back, getting more and more flustered.

"Me? I was asleep! What the hell did _you_ do? You don't even remember it!"

By then several of the mercenaries had come out in a rather hasty fashion, half-naked in many cases, with foggy eyes and stumbling sleepily. Once they took stock of the situation, most of them became rather unhappy.

The guards who had the last watch and had been awake through the tumult, however, were thoroughly amused.

The whole incident made the first half of the day rather quiet for Yemon and Tatsuki. She wasn't really angry by then, but couldn't help fuming at the idiocy of the whole situation; so she walked at the back, sulking, while Yemon walked at the front of the caravan.

It was about an hour after noon that Yemon felt something unusual, a brief flash of reiatsu somewhere close. He looked around, but nobody seemed to have noticed, so he slowed his pace and fell back to the caravan driver.

"I think someone is following," Yemon said.

The look on the caravan's driver had been too plain, perhaps. Or maybe Yemon had only noticed because it was already too late. The caravan had been driven through a rocky area offering plenty of places to hide, and from these raiders started to appear all around them.

"Ambush!" Yemon shouted, readying his bow in an instant.

There was a flow of reiatsu, then another. Two Shinigami, one appearing in front of the caravan and the other at the back. Yemon could only focus at the one in front of him, he was huge, and as he appeared he was already swinging at one of the mercenaries, who was completely unaware of his presence.

Yemon let go of his arrow, and the loud bang of its impact on the Shinigami's arm almost brought the whole combat to a stop for an instant.

_Fuck, it wasn't enough, this guy's strong!_

A moment later, the Shinigami disappeared from his eyes, and Yemon jumped forward with his fastest Hyrenkyaku to avoid being sliced in half from behind. There was a scraping noise as the sword scratched the knife on his back. When he landed and turned around, he caught a glimpse of the other end of the caravan. Tatsuki was shooting her revolver, and at that moment the other Shinigami appeared besides her. He, too, was a fairly big guy, and he towered next to the small girl like he could break her with just a gesture.

"Tat-!"

He didn't even have time to shout. The Shinigami was attacking with a vertical slice downwards, but Tatsuki handily stepped just out of the way with a half-spin, and used the same move to throw an upwards kick at her opponent. The move had been fast and fluid, and the impact made a very loud cracking noise. The last thing Yemon saw before turning to his opponent were teeth flying out of the Shinigami's mouth.

His own opponent, however, was smiling.

"So it's not all rabble in this lot," the Shinigami said, raising his sword and pointing at Yemon, "former 11th Division, 7th seat, Ichitose Yuu."

"11th, what the hell is wrong with you lot? You all turned raiders?"

The combat continued around them. There were casualties on both sides, but Yemon couldn't spare the attention to evaluate the situation. He couldn't see Tatsuki anymore, but he could feel her reiatsu, which was more than he could say about the Shinigami she had fought.

"Eh? What's that?" Yuu asked.

"You're the second lot of former 11th leading a bunch of raiders I've found so far, and it's been like two weeks only."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"You're a Shinigami! What happened to guiding the souls of humans and purifying hollows?"

"What the hell man, that was never our shtick in the 11th, we just kick ass and get into fights."

Yuu didn't give any more time for Yemon to continue discussing things. He pushed forward with shunpo again, and forced the latter to dodge, readying the bow as he did. It was difficult to aim with all the fast movement, and six jumps of shunpo and Hyrenkyaku later they were still going at it without Yemon having landed a single arrow on him.

_Shit this is not good, at this rate he's more likely to get me than me get him._

Yemon gritted his teeth and, after making sure he was in clear ground, made a backwards jump with Hyrenkyaku when Yuu jumped at him again. For a moment both were moving at almost identical speed, so Yemon let go of his arrow. At the last moment he managed to raise his left arm before the arrow was completely out, sending it flying over the heads of everyone. Had he not done it, he would have likely hit someone from the caravan, as Yuu had read his move perfectly and was already dodging.

He stumbled as he landed but managed to keep his footing, immediately reaching for his knife.

_I really need to get better at all the Quincy stuff, it's useless against guys this good._

"Ah, about time, you going to fight like a man now?"

"Hows that?"

"One on one, _mano a mano._" Yuu smirked.

"Yeah, about that... Do you guys from the 11th always do this? Even when fighting hollows? One on one, hand to hand, right after introducing yourselves, why is that anyway."

"That's how we do things, man!" Yuu shouted, looking like he was having a grand old time, "we kick ass and take names, we love battle, and each one of us wants to be stronger than the rest! That's all there is to life man, if you like fighting, this world's the place to be!"

"Hmmm, interesting. I wonder what your captain was like," Yemon commented in a carefree tone, tilting his head slightly.

"Damn strongest captain of the Gotei 13, that's who he was. Zaraki Kenpachi. Ah, that's good memories on that name."

Yuu seemed to gaze far away for several seconds, and when he was done with his trip down memory lane he fixed his eyes on Yemon again, and smiled widely, showing his somewhat less than perfect two rows of teeth.

"Well then! Let's go man, what's your name?"

"Kurosaki Yemon," he replied, pulling the knife out of the sheath and dropping the pack to the ground behind him, "pleasure."

Yemon didn't dispense any more pleasantries. He pulled forward with Hyrenkyaku, and his swing landed with a loud metallic grinding noise on Yuu's parry. They pushed against each other for a few moments, and suddenly Yuu let go, jumping back with shunpo. Yemon nearly fell forward, but before he could regain his balance, there was a loud explosion. Then another almost immediately, and another.

It took a few moments for him to take everything in. Yuu was flying atop a small ball of debris, and he seemed odd, like there was something missing. Yemon realized he was missing most of his limbs, which were falling to the ground in large, bloodied pieces, same as him. He dropped with a final thud he couldn't hear under the ringing of his ears, and didn't move a muscle.

"Pheeeew, that really got him!" One of the mercenaries said.

"Hell yeah, but all six mines went boom, damn that was expensive," another mercenary explained.

"No sweat, you get dibs on the loot man, fair's fair," the first one answered.

Yemon wasn't listening. He approached the fallen Shinigami slowly, and realized he was still alive, struggling to retain consciousness. By the looks of it, it wouldn't be long before he lost it forever.

"How," he struggled to speak in a low voice, making Yemon kneel next to him to listen, "how did they..."

He couldn't finish the question, so Yemon did it for him. He raised his left arm and formed his Quincy bow.

"Remember this?" Yemon asked, and Yuu nodded, "I realized it'd be almost impossible for me to hit you with it. When I was shooting, half of the time I wasn't even aiming at you, I was shooting past you at the others. They never saw it coming."

Yuu opened his eyes wide in understanding.

"I... See... Shit, what a way..."

He didn't finish the phrase.

Yemon ignored the noise the other mercenaries were making rooting through the dead bodies and simply searched for Tatsuki. She was sitting on a rock looking at the madness around them, but apparently unaffected by it. She still had the revolver in her hand, and when Yemon glanced at the fallen Shinigami she had fought, he realized he was dead too.

"Are you okay Tatsuki?"

"Yeah, no sweat. You?"

"Better than them."

He pointed with his thumb at the dead Shinigami, and Tatsuki nodded. Yemon sat down next to her.

"I think we lost two people," Tatsuki spoke again with a flat voice, as if she was simply giving out some trivial information, like the weather.

"Don't care," Yemon replied in a half-mumble.

Tatsuki looked at him, and saw he had a hard look on his face as he eyed the mercenaries go from body to body.

"That's how it goes in the wasteland, Yemon. You've got to survive somehow, if someone tries to kill you and you kill them back, the spoils are yours for the taking."

"Still don't like it."

"You'll get over it."

"Yeah, that's what I'm afraid of. And I don't see you going through the dead."

Yemon looked at Tatsuki and saw she was smiling. She partially unzipped her jumpsuit and reached for the inside pocket, pulling out something. It was a syringe with a red liquid inside, some tubes and a gauge at the opposite end of the covered needle.

"That's a stimpack?" Yemon asked surprised.

"Yes, the Shinigami had it. No point taking the sword, it'll just start breaking on its own soon."

Yemon looked at the dead Shinigami, then closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"I know, I know," Tatsuki interrupted him, "you hate the wasteland."

"Yeah."

The rest of the trip was less exciting, the only thing they came across was a lone roaming hollow. Under other circumstances it would have been a worry for the somewhat undermanned caravan, but fell quickly to a well placed arrow from the Quincy bow. When they reached Junktown, Yemon was appalled by what he saw, a small settlement not too different from the raider camp he had attacked to rescue Tandi, with rusted-out cars and assorted trash piled up around to form a protective barrier, and a few well armed guards with faces that could curl up brahmin milk coming to greet them. In the background he could hear the mooing of brahmin and the barking of dogs.

"This is Junktown," Yemon said.

"Yes, why?" Tatsuki asked.

"I thought you said this was a city."

"It _is_ a city, or at least what passes for a city these days," she answered as she shielded her eyes from the sun, looking around, "I haven't been here in years, it's gotten bigger too. Come on, let's see if anyone has something to say about your chip. Oi," she called one of the guards as they walked towards him, "where can we get some directions around here?"

"Directions?" He asked, scratching his chin, "ain't much to direct to, whatcha looking for?"

"Trading, mostly, scavengers maybe?" Tatsuki clarified.

"Well, that's easy, ya gotta drop by the Darkwaters and talk to Killian, whatever ya need he'll know where to find."

"Cool, thank you. Let's go," she turned to Yemon, and realized he wasn't there, "where the hell is he?"

A few moments later he emerged from behind the line of brahmin, walking towards Tatsuki as he adjusted his clothes, tightening the obi and adjusting his caps bag.

"Sorry, just checking with these guys," Yemon said, smirking.

"Hm?" Tatsuki asked, curious.

"They are staying until tomorrow, and asked me if we were going too," he explained, as his smirk sharpened, "so I replied it'd depend on their offer. Give them until morning and I'm sure they'll come back with a suggestion."

"Smooth. You want to leave tomorrow?"

"Pft, considering the size of this place," Yemon said, casting a glance around him, "we'll probably have finished checking the whole thing in ten minutes."

"Well, let's go to the shop first, there's some guy here named Killian that could know something."

"You don't know him?"

"I told you, I haven't been here in a long time."

Yemon followed Tatsuki in through the decrepit town built with rubble, old broken bricks and sheets of half rusted-away tin and iron. There wasn't a single house with less than six different materials used to keep itself upright. The smell of the brahmin was so intense Yemon had to cover his nose and hold his breath as they passed by their filthy pen, and the barking in the background continued non-stop. When they finally reached the shop in the centre of town, Yemon was feeling rather depressed at the prospects of finding anything in there.

"Come on Yemon, sharpen up."

"What do you expect to find here Tatsuki?"

"This guy's probably a scavenger, if he doesn't have what you want he may know where to find another vault or something."

There were two guards by the door, and another two inside, armed with hunting rifles and wearing thick green leather armour. The owner, Killian, nodded at them and smiled, a smirking smile halfway to a grimace. He had dirty brown short hair, a bad shave, and a strong-looking long face.

"Well howdy, welcome to the Darkwaters, what can I do for you today?"

"Yo," Tatsuki responded, taking the initiative before Yemon could say anything, "what to take a look at the merchandise, whatcha got here?"

"Whatever it is, if you have the caps, you need it, I got it," he gestured around, "weapons, ammo, tools..."

"Got any salvaged electronics?" Yemon asked.

"Sure, help yourself," Killian pointed at a pile on one side of the shop, "can't guarantee if it's in working order, _caveat emptor_ my friend."

"Sure, sure."

Yemon kept an eye on Tatsuki and Killian while he dug through the salvage, she had taken her revolver and was showing it to Killian, explaining something. The salvaged electronics were mostly junk, a few pieces of salvaged car engine parts too, but there was nothing resembling a chip. He distractedly tried to pick up what looked like a small battery, and almost dropped it when the unexpected weight pushed his arm down.

_Bloody hell, it's got to be ten pounds at least!_

"Hey Killian, what is this thing?" Yemon asked, raising the battery and showing it to the shop owner.

"That's a fission battery," Killian replied, turning away from Tatsuki, "perfect good order that one, you can have it for a hundred caps."

Before Yemon could respond, his eyes fell on a person walking inside the shop. He was walking with his left arm very stiff against his body, and on every step he had his eyes fixed on Killian.

"Ōmaeda sends his regards!"

At that moment he raised his arm, and Yemon saw he was walking stiffly because he was keeping a hunting rifle tight against his body.

"Watch out!" Yemon shouted, raising his left arm and concentrating, summoning his bright blue Quincy bow.

In the slow motion of battle hyper-awareness, Yemon saw Tatsuki fumble for a moment before reaching for the revolver sitting on the counter. There was a shot, and both Killian and Tatsuki dove for the ground, way too slowly. Yemon had already started to make an arrow, and as he let go, a second shot was fired from the rifle.

He didn't have time to see whether it had hit Tatsuki or missed, he watched his arrow fly and strike the attacker's arm, blood splattering as it was severed. The rifle he was holding shattered into pieces, and barely an instant later three reports followed in extremely quick succession. The man fell to the ground as everything sped up again, and Yemon saw Tatsuki holding her smoking revolver still trained towards the dead man.

_Bloody hell!_

"Tatsuki! Are you okay?" Yemon asked, rushing towards her.

"Yeah I'm fine," she replied, standing up easily, and turned towards Killian, "he wasn't aiming at me."

"Yeah," Killian's voice came from behind the counter, and a moment later he stood up, looking a bit dazed, and more than a bit angry, "thanks for saving my life there. Damn, seems like we've got a situation."

"Situation?" Yemon asked.

_You had to ask, didn't you?_ Tatsuki thought.

"Yeah, that bastard Ōmaeda's behind this, he's been trying to get one over me for a while, but this is too damn much," Killian said, and paused for a moment to look at Yemon and Tatsuki, "listen, you're not from town, think you can help me with this?"

"Uh, I'm not sure if it's a good idea," Yemon said, "who's this Ōmaeda?"

"Some fatass Shinigami that's moved here in Junktown, wants to run the place like a fucking Yakuza or something; he runs a Casino in the north end of town."

"Casino?" Yemon asked, curious.

"Casino?" Tatsuki echoed, with a lot more enthusiasm.

"Yeah, wants to run the shop too, wants to run the whole damn town, but I ain't giving in. So I need proof that he's up to no good, and then I can go to the sheriff. Tell you what, I'll give you a tape recorder and see if you can get him to try and hire you to kill me."

"Sheesh, I didn't know you cared for proof of anything out here in the wasteland," Yemon said, confusing Killian a bit, "still, seems like a lot of trouble, what's in it for us?"

"Tell you what, anything you want from the shop, it's yours, if it's a gun I'll throw as much ammo as you can carry, hows that? All free of charge."

"Hmmm, I..." Yemon had distractedly reached for his bag of caps while talking about shopping and what would be free of charge, and suddenly realized the bag wasn't there, "bloody hell, Tatsuki! Where... Huh?"

He looked around, but Tatsuki was nowhere to be found.

"Where the hell did she go?"

"You mean the girl?" Killian asked, and Yemon nodded in response, "she took off when I mentioned the Casino."

"But..." Yemon touched his obi again where the bag had gone missing, "oh bloody hell, you have to be kidding me..."

"What?"

"Right, never mind, we'll take the job. May as well, give me that tape recorder."

Yemon left the shop digging through his bag. The infernal barking of a dog was still going strong outside. As he put the running tape recorder inside a double pocket of his bag, he caught a whiff of a horrid smell coming from inside, and after a few moments he realized he still had that dried iguana-on-a-stick in there.

"Phew, it still looks the same, but damn it smells nasty. There's no way I'm eating this."

The barking had increased in intensity. Yemon looked at the origin of the sound, and saw a large grey mutt barking insistently at the door of one of the dilapidated houses.

"Someone get that bloody dog away from here!" A voice shouted from inside.

Yemon smirked, whistled loudly, and when the dog turned towards him, Yemon saw he had very dark eyes and a very fierce expression, with thick white liquid dripping from his mouth. Without second thought, Yemon tossed the iguana at the dog. After a few moments of hesitation and sniffing, the dog chewed it up hungrily and gulped.

Not a moment later he started coughing and retching. Yemon looked carefully, and saw he was chocking.

"Sheesh, it's a good thing I didn't eat that crap. Wait, hold on," Yemon approached the dog slowly, and a moment later he was firmly, and possibly recklessly, holding its muzzle as he tried to see what he was chocking on, "you silly mongrel, here, let me... don't! Don't struggle boy, here... There, good boy," Yemon said as he let go of the dog, pulling the stick of the iguana out of his throat, and tapping his wet nose with it, "you silly thing, be more careful next time."

Yemon smiled and tossed the stick aside, while the dog kept his eyes fixated on him. A moment later his fierce expression started to melt away, his almost blackened eyes slowly regained their colour, and his thick white drooling disappeared.

In the meantime, Yemon had made it to the Casino, if it could be called that. A spinning, downtrodden sign was the only outward sign of there being something different about the place. That, and the very spirited shouts and cheers coming from inside, some of which were easily identifiable as Tatsuki's.

_Sheesh._

When Yemon walked in, he was immediately greeted by a blonde woman in a very skimpy outfit, welcoming him to the Ōmaeda Casino.

"The only fun place in the wasteland, let me assure you."

"I see, I'm guessing my friend there would agree," he smirked, and turned to Tatsuki, "Tatsuki! You could have told me..."

"Busy!" She shouted back, grabbing a pair of dice and rolling away, while the crowd around the table cheered and hooted as she did.

"Geez girl, that's so cold," he turned to the smiling blonde, "any chance I could meet Ōmaeda?"

"Oh he usually doesn't mingle with the customers, he is quite a busy man."

"Well that, I'm not so much a customer as an _entrepreneur, _you see."

"I'm sorry, but..."

"Is there a problem?" A gruffy voice interrupted them.

"Not at all," Yemon replied, turning and then looking up to be able to see the face of the rather impressive fellow, "just want to see your boss."

"Are you expected?" The man asked in a voice that could be liberally translated as _you better fucking be._

"Not me, he's expecting someone else, and I'm here to tell him that someone'll miss his appointment."

The man and Yemon looked at each other for a few seconds, and finally the former nodded and gestured at him with his head.

"Okay, follow me, no funny business."

"No, nothing funny about them at all," Yemon replied, in a play on words that flew two light years above the gorilla's head, "sheesh, shallow end of the gene pool," he muttered.

He was led past the gambling tables to a small room at the back. When the door opened, he was greeted with the sight of a large and very fat man sitting behind a desk three sizes too small for him, eating crackers out of a bag. Even though he was seated, Yemon could see he had to be almost seven feet tall, he had a balding head with black hair and long sideburns, thick lips, and a wide and somewhat pudgy nose. He was wearing a Shihakushō with a tall purple collar, and very over the top jewellery: a thick, shiny chain around his neck and several rings and bracers on both hands. Next to him was a smaller guy wearing a metal armour and with a pistol holstered at his side.

_A Shinigami, right. Hm, looks like an idiot but I can't tell how strong he is._

"Someone to see ya boss." The gorilla said, pushing Yemon in and standing at the door, blocking the exit.

"What the hell? I'm a busy man, who the hell are ya?"

Yemon had been trying to think of what to say, but he just couldn't figure how to trick someone into confessing a crime. After seeing that the total IQ inside the room would probably drop to double digits after he left it, he decided a direct approach was likely enough.

"Noone important, just here to tell you that the guy you sent to kill Killian failed miserably. Ended up wasted, you see."

For a moment nobody moved, while Ōmaeda gave Yemon a very narrow look.

"I don't know you you are, but if you think you can come in here and accuse me of shit you don't know... uh... shit about, you're in for a shitload of pain."

_Sigh._

"Woah, woah, I'm not here to make any puny accusations. As I said, I was here to _inform_ you, just giving you the skinny. And I can probably help you a lot more."

"Really," Ōmaeda said, chuckling, "what kind of help could I need?"

"It's very simple, just work with me here. You're having trouble recruiting someone skilled enough to do the job; quite understandable, it must be slim pickings for outsiders here. Well, I'm here, I'm from out of town, and I bet I can do a lot better."

"Really?"

"Yes. For a price, of course, a man's gotta eat," they were interrupted by a specially loud cheer coming from the gambling area, "and there's that too," Yemon sighed.

"Hmmm," Ōmaeda hummed, thinking, "okay then, we can do this. But you work for me, and you better not double-cross me, _nobody_ ever double-crosses me."

"Sure thing. Say, what do you want Killian dead for anyway?"

"What? That's easy! He's in the way of business, so I get rid of him!" Ōmaeda laughed heartily, and munched on another cracker, "Ya gonna kill him or what then?"

"I see. Well, of course I will. I better get going then," he turned to the door, and the gorilla stepped aside, "I'll let you-"

The sounds coming from the gambling table changed suddenly, from the cheers and hoots of excitement to shouts of anger. Yemon rushed out of the room to see what was going on, at the same time several of the Casino guards were going too. Everyone seemed to be going for Tatsuki's table.

_Bloody hell, what now?_

"What the hell is this?" Tatsuki shouted, pressing her grip on the dealer's wrist and producing some small cracking and popping noises in the process from it, "you've been switching the fucking dice!"

The man couldn't hold any longer, and opened his hand, dropping not two, but four dice he had pressed to his palm. Tatsuki took them and pressed them with her fist, and a moment later she opened it to drop the results; two of them had crumbled, showing they had been partially hollowed out.

The shouts of the gamblers increased, and the guards started to step in and break the group apart, some more harshly than others. Yemon saw one going for Tatsuki, and in a split second made a decision. He disappeared with a quick Hyrenkyaku and put himself between Tatsuki and the guard.

"Sheesh, can't leave you alone for five minutes?" Yemon asked.

"What was that? What... Oi! Yemon! Let go," she struggled to free herself from Yemon, who had grabbed the back of her jumpsuit and was dragging her away, "what the hell? Stop this! They're fucking cheating! I want my caps back! Yemon!"

"Yes, yes, I know, it's always something, let's just go."

"But... My caps! You bastards," she shouted as Yemon dragged her out of the Casino, "this isn't over!"

They kept walking like that, until Tatsuki twisted herself free and grabbed Yemon's sleeve.

"What the hell, you're just going to walk away?"

"Not quite," he tapped his backpack, "gonna go to the shop first."

"Oh," Tatsuki replied, letting go of Yemon and pushing ahead, "that's a great idea, let's go."

"Huh... Right."

When they arrived to the Darkwaters shop, Tatsuki immediately broke off to browse, while Yemon put the pack on the counter and took the recorder out.

"Done and done, have a listen."

Killian replayed the exchange between Yemon and Ōmaeda, chuckling every so often. Finally he broke out laughing.

"_A man's gotta eat,_" he said, laughing again, "he didn't catch any of them, did he?"

"Nope. If he was any stupider it'd probably be legal to harvest his organs. So, hows that?"

"It's perfect. Hey Pinto!" Killian called, and one of the guards turned to him, and caught the tape recorder Killian had tossed at him, "go take this to Lars will ya? And get him to come over with some friends."

"Sure thing boss," the guard replied, pocketing the recorder and smirking.

"Well, so now about our business, what will you have? Guns? Chems? Tools? Stimpacks?"

"You have stimpacks? Real ones?"

"Hell yeah; told ya, if you want it, I got it. Two of them actually, what about-"

They were interrupted when, with a very loud thump, Tatsuki landed a pump-action shotgun on the counter.

"Ammo," she said in a very cold voice.

"Um... Tatsuki we were just..."

"Ammo!" She repeated.

"Sheesh, all right," Yemon sighed, "I guess that's it."

"Not a bad choice," Killian said, reaching under the counter and pulling out two boxes of shotgun shells, "one of the best guns I had in the shop, great condition too. Oh, listen," Killain turned to Yemon, leaving Tatsuki to load up the shotgun, "we're gonna go run Ōmaeda out of town, want to come and give us a hand? May be a laugh, and-"

"Let's go!" Tatsuki called, pumping the shotgun ready and walking out decisively.

"She's very determined, isn't she?" Killian asked, smiling.

"No kidding. Well, in for a penny, in for a pound I guess. It's going to be fun just to see him try to walk ten feet. Let's go get him."


	10. Wasteland Law

"No battle plan ever survives contact with the enemy."

- **Field Marshall Helmuth Carl Bernard von Moltke**

* * *

><p>"Tatsuki, wait up!"<p>

Yemon rushed out of the shop and chased after Tatsuki, finally catching her halfway towards the Casino; she had flung the shotgun over her shoulder, pocketed a handful of shells, and left without any more explanations.

"What now?" She asked, annoyed.

"Just wait for the guards to come, are you trying to get yourself killed?"

"I'm not killing anyone, I just want my caps back!"

"_My_ caps, you mean, but yes."

"Aah, same difference, don't be stingy now. Really, what kind of muppet are you? Are you okay with someone just swindling your caps?"

"No, but there's no need to go in guns blazing like that, if we wait for the guards and we all go in, it's more likely they'll give up without a fight."

"Sheesh, Yemon," Tatsuki scratched her head as she shook it, "you really are hopeless. That's not how things work in the wasteland, if someone crosses you, you set things right, right there and then!"

"But we don't have to this time! There are guards in this... town."

Their voices had been steadily raising, and at that point several people were watching them from a distance, with the obvious interest of the inhabitants of a town where nothing important ever happened.

"It's the principle of the thing!" Tatsuki continued, gesturing wildly as she got more and more excited, "here, there, it doesn't matter! What the hell are you doing out here if you can't understand something that simple!"

"I didn't want to be out here!" Yemon shouted.

"AND DO YOU THINK I DID?" Tatsuki shouted back at the top of her lungs.

Yemon's expression changed suddenly as his excitement dissolved away, like a red hot iron being plunged into water. Tatsuki was breathing heavily and looking at Yemon with a very fierce expression. After a few moments, Yemon looked down.

"No, you're right. I don't know anything about the wasteland," he reached back to his knife and unsheathed it, "if you want to do it like this, then let's do it."

Tatsuki was visibly surprised by Yemon's reply, and it took her a few moments to chase after him when he resumed his walk towards the Casino.

"Yemon, don't do anything stupid."

"Really," he replied in a very flat voice, resting his knife on his shoulder as he walked on.

"Yes, really," Tatsuki looked ahead and realized several guards were waiting outside of the casino already, "well, guess they're waiting for us."

"Yes, _guess_ they heard us coming," Yemon replied, giving Tatsuki a sideglance.

Tatsuki decided to ignore it and just step in front of Yemon, surveying her opposition. There were six people wearing green leather armor, four with hunter rifles and two with no ranged weapon in sight.

"Yemon," Tatsuki spoke in a low voice, "the ones who have no rifles probably have melee weapons, those are yours."

"Do you really want to kill six people for just a few caps?"

"If you're not going to help, then fuck off and don't get in the way."

Yemon didn't answer, he looked at Tatsuki, looked at the six guards in front of them, and just firmed his right hand's grip on his knife's tang.

"What the hell is this?" The head gorilla Yemon remembered well asked.

"We're here to tell your boss he's got to get out of town," Yemon replied, interrupting Tatsuki, "and to get the caps your cheating dealer took from my friend."

For a moment nobody said a word, the guards looked at each other unsure of what was going on, while Yemon and Tatsuki looked at them waiting for a reaction. Finally, the head gorilla spoke again.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Very simple really," Yemon replied, "in a few minutes the Sheriff and his guards are going to come here and tell you exactly what I have just said, only with more people and more guns. Really, we're doing you lot a courtesy here. So, what do you say?"

The guards once again exchanged glances and, after some low murmurs, one of them ran inside. A few moments later he ran out again, followed by the rest of the guards, including the man in the metal armour Yemon had seen inside next to...

"What the hell is this?" Ōmaeda asked, stepping out of the door and towering over everyone else with his immense size; he took a moment to look around and take stock of the situation, and addressed Yemon, "I told ya nobody double-crosses me, what the hell you think you're doing?"

"I figured I'd put one 'round you," Yemon said, smirking, "so, as it turns out, I was actually working for the law here. If you run away and don't come back, you'll escape with your life. If not, well, the guards will be coming shortly, but we're here in the meantime."

"Who the hell do you think you're talking to?" Ōmaeda said, narrowing his gaze as he eyed Yemon, "say it, do you have any idea who you're talking to?"

"Other than the fattest cat in the neighbourhood?" Yemon asked, lifting his knife off his shoulder and readying his stance, "not really. Anything else I should know?"

Ōmaeda was shaking in rage after listening to Yemon. He raised his trembling, clenched fist and, with a dramatic gesture, pointed at Yemon and Tatsuki with his open hand.

"Kill them!" Ōmaeda shouted.

Less than a fraction of a second later, Yemon had used Hyrenkyaku to jump at Ōmaeda, swinging his knife in a wide arc. The fat Shinigami managed to barely dodge, jumping back with surprising agility and speed and landing precariously on the tin roof of the building.

The guards were shocked in surprise by Yemon's move, which gave Tatsuki enough of an opening to start her own move. She trained her shotgun at the guards and, with no hesitation, started unloading with as much speed as she could muster without jamming the firearm while running towards the nearest building, a half-demolished dwelling that looked like it had not been inhabited for at least a decade.

Yemon didn't bother looking back, the sounds coming from the guards and the sustained gunfire told him all he needed to know about what Tatsuki was doing. As long as the guards felt the need to continue shooting, it meant Tatsuki was alive and making trouble for them.

_I hope the town guards don't take too long though._

He pushed forward again with Hyrenkyaku, and his second swing was, again, narrowly dodged by Ōmaeda with a very unbecoming clumsy shunpo. The roof of the casino was made of nearly rusted-out zinc sheets, and on every step it felt like it'd crumble under their feet if they so much as tried to look at it for landing. On the third attack, Ōmaeda seemed to stumble and fall, as he crashed past the roof and on to the ground.

_He still moves really fast for someone so fat._

As if wanting to confirm Yemon's thoughts, as soon as he landed, Ōmaeda disappeared from Yemon's sight as he jumped down to street level, and his voice came from behind the vault dweller's back, clear and firm, no hesitation or sign of exhaustion.

"Crush, Gegetsuburi!"

Yemon managed to do a half-turn before he was hit, bringing his knife sideways to block. The impact was surprisingly powerful, and as a large spiked metallic ball crashed on his weapon, he was lifted off his feet and thrown across the street, landing with a _smash_ through the wall of the nearest dwelling.

"Just who the hell do you think I am, boy?" Ōmaeda shouted triumphantly, pulling at the chain of his released Zanpakutō and grabbing the heavy metallic ball at the end, "I'm Ōmaeda Marechiyo, I was the Lieutenant of the 2nd Division of the Gotei 13! I was the Corps Commander of the Patrol Corps in the Onmitsukidō!"

Tatsuki gave a quick glance through a hole on the wall as she reloaded her shotgun. There were three guards laying on the street, dead or injured enough not to be a problem, and several others were shooting in her general direction.

_They're not even aiming, they just shoot from cover and hope they hit me somehow. What a bunch of cowards. Still, there's a lot of them._

She took a piece of metallic junk that in other times may have been a television, judging by the vacuum tubes and the rest of the electric apparatus, although the screen was long gone. She readied herself, threw it through a nearby rend in the wall, and quickly aimed her shotgun through a different hole. The sudden movement brought two careless people out of their hiding spots to better shoot at what they thought was their opponent, and Tatsuki took the chance to shoot them down.

_Five more shells, two down. Shit, I'm not going to have enough ammo, I should have taken all of it. Where the hell is Yemon?_

The loud crashing noise of Yemon being thrown through a wall answered her question. She gritted her teeth and moved farther along the wall inside the dilapidated building, always trying to stay one step ahead of her opponents. She jumped past a fallen dresser, and at that moment her instinct kicked in as she felt some movement where none should have been. She turned as fast as she could, but not fast enough to avoid the attack of the guard that had been hiding behind that dresser, waiting for his chance to approach. His sharp knife cut through her clothes and flesh, and Tatsuki grit her teeth as everything started to spin when the edge sliced against her ribs.

She fell on her back and, spurred by his success, the guard pushed forward for a second attack. Tatsuki was faster this time, turning sideways to avoid the knife and, as she put her arm around the guards arm, rolling back in the same direction and throwing a hit with her right elbow.

The guard gave a very satisfying howl of pain as his arm snapped. Tatsuki finished her combination attack by kicking him on the face as she turned, and barely an instant after he had landed on his face, she put his own knife through his back, perfectly placed to bury it in his heart.

Tatsuki lay down on the ground and unzipped her jumpsuit, exploring the wound. She inhaled sharply through clenched teeth when she saw the knife had gone from the floating ribs on his left side almost to the clavicle, cutting down to the ribs and passing less than an inch over her left breast. It was bleeding freely and very spectacularly too.

"Shit. I didn't want to use this so early," she murmured, pulling out the stimpack she had recovered during the trip, "this is going to leave another scar."

Ōmaeda walked slowly towards the crashed wall Yemon had gone through, with the satisfied gait of a cat sure of having caught a mouse. He caught a glimpse of something shiny inside, heard a faint croaking he couldn't identify as Yemon's Pip-boy, and a moment later had to push himself hard to avoid the arrow Yemon had shot at him. He appeared behind Ōmaeda an instant later, bruised and covered in dirt, and slashed at the Shinigami with his knife. It was blocked easily, and his subsequent push ended up deflecting both weapons to the ground.

Yemon let go of his knife and raised his left arm, quickly forming his Quincy bow and firing an arrow at Ōmaeda at point blank range. Once again the former Lieutenant of the 2nd Division showed his prowess by dodging most of the attack, which hit him on the left shoulder as he jumped back. Not missing a step, he had already started a counter with Gegetsuburi, which hit Yemon on the stomach as he, too, jumped backwards to lessen the impact, holding the cloth that wrapped the tang of his knife. He pulled hard at the cloth to recover his knife, and when he did, he bent down with his hand on his stomach. Opposite to him Ōmaeda had his hand on his left shoulder and was moving his left arm up and down, as if to assess the damage.

"Damn, this guy's strong," Yemon muttered.

As he was looking at Ōmaeda, the latter disappeared in a blur of shunpo, only to re-emerge right in front of Yemon. The exchange replayed almost exactly the same as it had before, with Yemon's knife being blocked by the large ball-and-chain of Gegetsuburi to the ground. When Yemon raised his left arm, Ōmaeda suddenly grabbed him by the left wrist, smirking, and made a second attack with a reverse slash.

Yemon thought that at that distance he'd be able to block the ball before it gained too much momentum. Instead, he found a sharp blade giving him a deep cut in his right arm and continuing through to slice at his belly. He had not expected a sealed Zanpakutō. Yemon tried desperately to get away from Ōmaeda, and tried to bring forth his bow with as much reiatsu as he could muster. The result was very unstable, and it collapsed in a bang of spirit particles, sending both men tumbling back in opposite directions.

Ōmaeda was the first one to stand up, while Yemon struggled to do the same but in vain, as most of his strength had left him. When Omadea came into Yemon's field of vision, he was smirking to cover a grimace of pain; his right hand looked rather burnt and scarred, where he had taken the brunt of Yemon's bow non-accidental mishap.

"If that's all you've got, kid, then this is the end of the line for you."

Before Yemon could say anything they were interrupted by an explosion, coming from the firefight in front of the casino. Ōmaeda turned and whistled appreciatively.

"Will you look at that, they're still trying to nail her. Not bad, not bad at all. Ah well, guess I'll have to take care of her too."

Tatsuki ran for cover across the street taking advantage of the confusion her grenade had caused. As she came out of the cloud, she stopped for an instant to discharge two shells on a very surprised looking guard, who had made the last mistake of his life by stepping out of cover when she was passing a few meters from him.

She pumped the shotgun, knowing full well what was coming next.

_Empty. And I'm out. Well, damn, back to the revolver. One grenade and the knife... Am I glad I took these grenades from Yemon. Where the hell is he? Didn't he say the sheriff was coming?_

She ducked back behind the corner when an errant shot clipped one of the concrete bricks barely five inches above her head. She took three deep breaths, clenched her teeth, and quickly pushed out of cover. She immediately discharged five shots in short order, taking advantage of the amateurish reactions of the guards, who always gave themselves away when hey thought they had a target. Less than a second later she had ducked back into cover, and several howls of pain confirmed it had been a productive skirmish.

_Score!_

She was about to reload her gun when a shadow fell on her. Without waiting a moment, she rolled away and managed to dodge a guard falling from the roof of the house she was propped against. He was about six feet tall, dark skinned with a buzz cut, and was wearing a makeshift metallic armor with some spikes on the shoulderpads, wielding a combat knife. Iza, Omaeda's personal bodyguard, though Tatsuki didn't know his name.

"Nice try asshole," Tatsuki said, reaching for her own knife or, rather, the knife she took from the dead guard that had cut her.

"I see, so you brought a knife to a gunfight," Iza said, smirking, "I guess I'm not the only one out of ammo. Too bad for you."

"Too bad?" Tatsuki asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, ya think the rest will stay back now that I've got you cornered?"

"Yes, about that," Tatsuki replied, smirking back at him, "seems like the cavalry has arrived."

Behind the corner, the firefight started again in earnest, and the voice of the Sheriff, Lars, boomed over all of it, ordering the casino guards to surrender.

"Hah, not gonna make a lick of difference girl. The boss will take care of them."

"Really, all by himself?" Tatsuki replied, with a note of scepticism in her voice.

"Yes, all by himself," Iza replied, looking up and listening, "I wonder what he's doing though."

Tatsuki took that moment to lunge at him, but despite appearances he was alert and prepared, dodging the attack and slicing at Tatsuki's arm as he did. She too reacted well, pulling back and ducking to rush him from below. She blocked his next knife attack and, feinting a counter with her own blade, made a spin and a high sweep aiming for Iza's knees. The impact nearly threw Iza off-balance, but he had shifted his weight well to avoid giving Tatsuki leverage to break his knee.

He rode the impact and, after making half a spin himself, shifted trying to kick Tatsuki back. She dodged with a backflip and landed in a crouch, holding her knife in front of her with a reverse grip.

Iza made a couple of steps to test his leg and smiled.

"Not bad. Come on then, round two."

It took Yemon several moments to realize what was happening. Ōmaeda had made a boast about how he was going to kill Tatsuki after killing him, and immediately he howled out in pain, twisting on place as something appeared to have attached itself to his oversized butt.

At last, he recognized the grey mutt he had fed the iguana-on-a-stick to. Ōmaeda howled and spun trying to shake the dog off, and when he finally managed, the grey hound went flying with a ripping sound, and a piece of Omaeda's clothes firmly gripped in his maw. Judging by the splatter of red, Yemon guessed the dog had bitten through enough to get breakfast out of the ordeal.

"You damn mutt, you're dogmeat!" Ōmaeda shouted, brandishing his sword and charging at the canid.

Yemon took the chance to struggle to his feet, and as Ōmaeda lunged at the dog (_Dogmeat, I guess_, Yemon thought), he called forth his Quincy bow. It flashed unsteadily, flickering as he struggled to remain upright while he formed an arrow, trying not to get distracted by the irregular croaking of the Pip-boy. On Ōmaeda's second swing, right after Dogmeat let out a yelp of pain, Yemon released, and the arrow flew true, hitting the Shinigami on the back, on left side of his ribcage.

It had been too weak to hit through, but Omaeda's new howl of pain and the new visible wound made it clear he had felt it. Yemon's legs wobbled under him.

_Shit, everything's spinning._

"You damn punk bitches," Ōmaeda grated, and turned to Yemon with an expression of rage, "I'm going to kill you all!"

His shunpo had been too fast for Yemon to follow, he only managed to avoid a lethal hit by a small margin, partly by instinct, partly because his legs lost strength and he just started falling. But as a result Ōmaeda skewered him with his Zanpakutō, right next to the collarbone on his left side.

A moment later, a ferocious growl warned Ōmaeda of the hideous chomping that befell his left arm as Dogmeat rushed forward and dug his teeth in his forearm, biting with all his strength and shaking his head as his fangs tore through skin and muscle.

Ōmaeda let out another shout, a mix of pain and rage, but when he tried to bring his Zanpakutō back he found instead that Yemon was holding with his right hand on his own, keeping the sword firmly in place. Instead of pulling his sword free, he pulled Yemon towards himself.

"What the fuck!" He shouted, moments before a very audible snap gave notice of Dogmeat's progress at ripping his arm off.

"You," Yemon spoke slowly, raising his left arm with difficulty and grasping at Omaeda's neck, "are deadmeat."

The Pip-boy started to croak loudly as Yemon's reiatsu increased, and a bright white light started to appear around his wrist, as the reiatsu materialized into a confused cloud of spirit particles. In desperation, Ōmaeda kneed Yemon in the stomach trying to break free, but it wasn't until a moment later that Yemon finally let go, at the moment he released all the reiatsu he had accumulated, with a final bang that drowned the last, loudest croak of the Pip-boy. The blast nearly ripped Omaeda's head off, blowing his throat and most of his neck away, as well as tearing through Yemon's hand, breaking several bones in the process.

In the stillness of the immediate aftermath, only a soft gurgle from the dying Ōmaeda and the growling of Dogmeat broke the silence.

Tatsuki ducked under Iza's knife attack and tried to give a low counter as she pushed forward as fast as she could, but once again the man dodged and pushed past her. It was the third time they had done the same exchange, and it was the same result, they were both too fast for those attacks to hit, and Tatsuki avoided a a more direct contest of strength with the much larger man. All they did was exchange positions. They both took a couple of steps away from each other.

"This ain't gonna get us anywhere," Iza said, crouching slightly with the knife at the ready, "are you just wasting time?"

"Same to you, you expect your boss to come and save you?"

"Maybe," Iza smirked, "too bad you probably won't see him coming."

"Really," Tatsuki replied in a flat tone.

"Yeah. You really have no idea, do you?"

"Idea? Of what?"

"Ōmaeda-san; used to be a Lieutenant in the Gotei army, you know," his smile widened as Tatsuki's eyes became clearly fixed on him, "survived the great war, the bombs, you don't get to live past all that without being a badass."

"Why, thank you," Tatsuki replied, clearly confusing her opponent, "but I bet he just ran away, that's-"

They both stopped talking when a sudden surge of reiatsu hit them, coming from somewhere they couldn't see. Tatsuki recognized Yemon's, and Iza, Omaeda's. It had been a short but very intense pulse as if both were clashing at their limit, and immediately afterwards both had practically disappeared. Iza appeared rather distracted by the uncertain outcome.

_Chance! Let's finish this!_

Tatsuki put a hand to her pocket and dropped something as she pushed forward at Iza. The man reacted well again, and after two fast swings they both missed and again rushed past each other. Iza took two steps back, Tatsuki did the same, and a moment later she took several more as she rushed back and jumped aside past the corner of the Casino building they were fighting next to.

"What the-"

Iza's question died in his mouth as the explosion of the frag grenade Tatsuki had dropped took him completely by surprise. She waited stretched on the ground and covering her head until the loudest of the debris falling noise had subsided, and then stood to check the result of her trap. She saw the remains of Iza's legs before she saw the rest of him, and he didn't have a chance to say any last words before he passed out.

"I'm sorry, but survival is not all about _badassery,_" she said to the dying man.

A moment was all she let herself take to assess the results of the battle. There were fallen bodies all over the dusty street, some completely immobile, others with variable degree of hurt. The Casino guards were the ones that had taken the brunt of the damage, but even then several of the Sheriff's troops had taken some too. Seeing that it was over, she quickly went in search of Yemon, rushing in the direction she had felt that surge of reiatsu.

She saw him walking towards her from a distance, leaving behind the dead body of his opponent, and dragging his knife behind him with obvious difficulty, and being followed by a grey dog.

"Yemon!" Tatsuki shouted, rushing towards him.

"Oh, hi," Yemon replied when Tatsuki reached him, "fancy meeting you here."

"What happened to you? Look at yourself, shit what happened to your hand?"

"It's okay," he struggled to talk, "it's how things... work in the wasteland... isn't it..."

As he finished talking his legs gave and he fell forward, forcing Tatsuki to catch him. She felt the stickiness of blood on her hands when she grabbed him, and she couldn't understand a word of what he was mumbling.

"Yemon! Shit, Yemon! Hang on!"

She dragged him a few meters to rest him on the ground with his back to a wall, and quickly explored his wounds. The blood flow was regular in both wounds, a good sign that he didn't have a wound in a major artery.

"Shit, shit! Medic!" She shouted, looking around, and then stood and rushed to the Sheriff's group, calling for a medic.

There was a medic, but he was too busy with other wounded people, some as bad as Yemon, to help her. She ran around like a headless chicken asking for help, a doctor, a stimpack, anything.

_Fuck, fuck, fuck! Why did I use that stimpack! Dammit!_

"Are you in need of healing?"

Tatsuki skidded to a stop and turned to the voice. A young man wearing a Shinigami uniform with a single-strap pack similar to Yemon's slung across his chest and back, was addressing her with a surprisingly calm voice. He had long, dirty black hair, a narrow and somewhat downcast face, and was a good head taller than her.

"Yes! It's urgent! Do you have a stimpack? Are you a doctor? Please!"

"I am a healer of the Children of the Cathedral, envoy of the Purifier of Flesh. For a small donation, I can-"

Tatsuki didn't give him time to finish. She had taken her bag of caps, or rather Yemon's bag of caps, out of her pocket, and thrown it at the healer. As soon as he had grabbed it, Tatsuki grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him away at a fast clip. Yemon hadn't moved from his place, but was still breathing.

"He's really hurt!"

"Please calm down. Yes, I see, two wounds, hm, will you be so kind as to help me," he told Tatsuki, and gestured her to help him place Yemon properly on the ground, "I believe my healing kidō will be enough to save his life, however, with the small donation-"

"Just hurry!"

The healer drew a square around Yemon, and placed four pegs on the corners. He took some medical supplies from his pack, made a quick patch-up job on Yemon, then knelt next to him just outside the square on the ground and raised his right hand, palm facing forward and holding his right wrist with his left hand. A small glowing ball of kidō appeared in front of his hand, and Tatsuki felt a strange flow of reiatsu surroundhing both him and Yemon.

"Do not fret, the healing techniques passed down to us from the Blessed Unohana are without equal. He will be out of danger soon, but he will require some rest."

Tatsuki watched him work for a while in silence, but after a while, and seeing how Yemon was visibly getting out of danger, she couldn't contain her curiosity.

"Who are you?" Tatsuki asked, looking at the thin man, "I don't think I've heard of the... Uh, what was it? Children of the Cathedral?"

"Yes, we are the Children of the Cathedral. We live and work amongst the most unfortunates living in the wasteland, trying to restore life and purify the damage of the Great Catastrophe that has befallen the world. Alas, our numbers dwindle, and there are few of us for all too many people in need. Not many of us have ventured as far as this place from our sacred grounds."

"But, you're a Shinigami, right?"

"Yes, are you perhaps familiar with the old world of Soul Society?"

"Well," Tatsuki hesitated, "somehow."

"We were part of what was called the Fourth Division, led by the Blessed Unohana. Life and Death, symbols of our past, we were always called in times of war, to restore life where Death made its home. Alas, the task that now lays before us is perhaps the greatest challenge we have ever been called to overcome."

Tatsuki eyed the man with curiosity, and certain caution. There was a hint of fanaticism in his voice that she didn't like, or trust, but it was clear his healing abilities were good.

_But not as good as Orihime. Not even close._

After perhaps another half an hour, Yemon started to regain consciousness. The Shinigami stopped and sighed.

"He should be out of danger now. Some rest and food will do wonders to restore his strength. Curious, he doesn't seem to be a pure soul, he feels almost... _human_, if you will," he said, and looked at Tatsuki with badly disguised interest, "_very_ curious indeed."

"Look," Tatsuki said, cautious and with her hand resting close to her concealed combat knife, "we're just two people trying to get by, okay?"

"Oh don't misunderstand me, far from trying to bring misfortune to you, I am merely wondering if your presence is something I should interpret as a good omen, a sign that the old world may come back one day soon, maybe."

"No," Tatsuki replied immediately, "there's... _circumstances_ around us, but nothing like that. Sorry."

"Ah, very well," he nodded, and packed up his medical kit, "I shall take my leave then, there are others who undoubtedly will need my help."

When Yemon came to, he was in unfamiliar surroundings, laying on the bottom bed of an old bunk, in a dark, dirty room. There were a few other bunk beds around, and a couple of tables with half-destroyed chairs around them. He was half naked, and hurting all over. He carefully explored his left shoulder and his stomach, and could still feel the pain of the two wounds he had gotten in his last battle. They seemed to be somewhat healed, but the slashes were still there.

_That's gonna leave a scar I bet. How long have I been out?_

He raised his left arm to check on the Pip-boy, and felt a dull pain in his left hand. He carefully flexed his fingers, biting back the pain but satisfied when he felt everything working correctly. The surprising thing was the Pip-boy, it had only been a few hours.

"I wonder, did Tatsuki get some stimpacks?"

He nearly jolted out of the bed when something cold and wet landed on his face, but when a moment later Dogmeat started licking his face, he recognized the dog and laughed out loud.

"Well hi there Dogmeat!" Yemon said, scratching the dog's head, "how are you feeling? You got a pretty good hit on you too."

Dogmeat barked happily, making Yemon laugh some more.

"Sheesh, you really saved my butt back there. Who's a good boy?"

Yemon sat on the bed and, after having to find his extra change of clothes in his bag, got dressed and dragged himself to his feet. It was dark outside, and he placed the building quickly when he saw the light of the Casino not far from where he was. The damage of the battle was still obvious, but he couldn't see any bodies or anything like that around. There was a lot of noise coming from the casino though, and when he approached he recognized Tatsuki's voice amongst them.

"You _have _ to be shitting me!" Yemon exclaimed.

He made his way to the Casino and walked in. The old gambling tables had been thrown away, and instead there was a large carpet on the ground. Tatsuki was sitting in the middle, legs crossed and pointing with her open hand at a pair of dice and an empty tin can. The most striking thing was that she had opened the top part of her jumpsuit and pulled the right sleeve free, so that the entire right part of her upper body was naked. Yemon recognized that was the old style custom of dealers, to show they were not hiding anything in their sleeves. The fact that she was showing on of her breasts didn't seem to bother anyone, including her. Caps and pieces of paper exchanged hands, alcohol seemed to be running rather freely too, courtesy of a confiscated stash from Ōmaeda.

Tatsuki raised both the can and the dice to show them to everyone, threw the dice in, and with a flourish, placed the tin upside down covering the thrown dice.

"Make your bets! Chou! Han!"

Caps started to appear as gamblers placed their different bets. Yemon left the Casino as the cheers of the winners and the disappointed hoots of the losers once again tore through the air.

_I'm just too tired for this shit._

When Tatsuki finally made her way back to the common room, she was drunk enough to have trouble walking in a straight line. She stumbled in the dark under the chorus of snores, banged her shins against the chairs a few times, and finally crawled into bed while still hugging the bag of caps she had managed to win during the long night.

"Shiiiit, I can'tsh believe I'm sho drunk," she mumbled, "that wash fun."

She tried to put herself into a more comfortable position, finding a very convenient pillow to rest her head on. Her foggy, drunken head was making a mess of the events of the day, and how well it had all ended.

"I shtill can'tsh believe Yemon'sh jusht walked in, then walksh out without shaying anything," she hiccuped, and continued mumbling, "that guy gotsh him fixed up good. Not ash good ash Orihime... My Orihime... Shigh, why am I thinking of Orihime now?" She passed both her hands over her face as she clenched her teeth tightly, and then continued mumbling, "why did I get sho drunk? There'sh no point if I'sh gonna keep remembering. Shit. What am I doing..."

She gave a small cry of surprise and jolted upright like a shot when the pillow suddenly moved and wrapped itself around her. She banged her head against the top of the bunk bed hard, and grunting to try and stifle a cry of pain, she turned back. In the dim light she saw that she actually had gotten into the bed where Yemon was sleeping, and in his sleep he had tried to put his arm around her.

"Dammit," she whispered, pressing both hands against her head where she had crashed, "how the hell can you shleep so carefree, shomeone crawls into your bed and you don't even notice."

Yemon half-mumbled something unintelligible in his sleep, and his soft breathing continued undeterred. Tatsuki spent several seconds looking at him sleep, thinking of how he had come to her after his battle with Ōmaeda.

"_It's how things work in the wasteland,_" she echoed his words, shaking her head, "dammit Yemon, you can't just go and throw your life away!"

After a while, Tatsuki sighed, and curled up with her head on Yemon's shoulder, gently putting his arm around herself.

_This isn't like the Med-X. Seriously Yemon, this isn't like that._

That was her last thought before she fell asleep.


	11. The Shroud of God

"I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones."

- **Albert Einstein.**

* * *

><p>Yemon was taken from his sleep by a wet sensation on his right hand, where his arm was dangling down from the bed. It would go away and return, until he woke up to realize Dogmeat was licking it. Without thinking, he reached out and scratched the muzzle of the grey mutt, who whined satisfied.<p>

"Good morning boy," he muttered, "are you bored of seeing me sleep? Ugh, what..."

There was a weight on his left shoulder, which together with the wound made him rather uncomfortable. When he opened his eyes, he realized Tatsuki was sleeping next to him, head resting on his shoulder and he had his left arm around her. Worst of all she was still half-naked, as she was when dealing the dice.

"What the hell, again?" Yemon muttered.

"Whassit?" Tatsuki muttered.

When Yemon heard her waking up, he let go and, pushing her aside a tad too roughly, tried to sit up way too fast to realize it was a bunk bed.

"Shit!" He howled when his head banged against the top bunk, prompting Dogmeat to start barking.

"What the- Fuck!" Tatsuki echoed when she tried to stand up on the opposite side of the bed, and fell back on it after banging her head on the bunk as well, "dammit all! Will that dog shut up!"

"Ugh, damn that hurt," Yemon said, and reached out to scratch Dogmeat's head, while pressing his head with his other hand, "there, there boy, you're annoying the scary lady."

"Damn," Tatsuki growled, bending forward with both hands on her head, "that bloody hurt."

"Are you okay Tatsuki?"

"Shut up, not so loud..."

"Huh? What's wrong?" Yemon asked in a softer voice.

"I have a bloody hangover," Tatsuki replied as she took the canteen and pulled a long drink from it.

"A... a what?"

Tatsuki stopped drinking and turned to Yemon. She looked pretty tired, with dark circles under her eyes and a very unfriendly disposition.

"You don't know... Bah, nevermind, you don't know anything."

"Right," Yemon replied in a somewhat dry voice, "I forgot. Of course I don't know anything."

Yemon stood and started to get dressed again, muttering to himself in pain as his different wounds kicked him a reminder of the fight the day before. He was surprised not only by how closed they were, but specially by how well the one in his right arm had healed; he thought it was rather deep, but he was able to move the arm with no problem.

"Yemon," Tatsuki called.

"What is it now?"

"What the hell were you trying to do yesterday? Did you want to get yourself killed?"

"The hell? You're the one who got us into that mess!"

"Fuck's sake don't shout," she replied, "that's not the point."

"So what's the point then?"

"Why did you take off like that? If the fight was too hard, we should have run, you're supposed to stay alive dammit!"

"So that's why you're angry at me now?"

"You're always going on about how you hate the wasteland, and you don't keep your guard up, and you just don't listen to me! Ugh," Tatsuki stopped and put her hands on her head again, after having raised her voice a tad too much.

Yemon bent down and looked at Tatsuki from the opposite side of the bunk bed, eyeing at her intently while trying to guess what was going through her head. Finally, he sat back on the bed and then laid back, so that his head landed on the mattress next to Tatsuki.

"Why the hell are you so mad?" He asked.

Tatsuki didn't answer immediately. She dropped her arms to her lap and obstinately looked down at the ground. Her voice was hesitant when she finally started speaking again.

"You... You act so haughty, it's like you don't realize where you are..."

"Tatsuki!" Yemon interrupted sharply, making Tatsuki wince. "What. Is. It."

"I'm sorry," she replied, pressing her hands tightly into fists, "I'm sorry I almost got you killed yesterday. When you came to me bleeding all over... Dammit, I'm mad at you, and I feel like shit..."

Yemon didn't answer, he simply looked at Tatsuki for a long time, thinking.

"Am I really bothering you that much Tatsuki?" Yemon asked, and after fruitlessly waiting for a reply, he continued, "yes, I don't know anything about the wasteland. I'm probably complaining too much, but-"

"Stop it. Just... Just stop it Yemon," Tatsuki talked in a strained voice, "everything you say... Just stop already. It's like you're reproaching me with everything you say."

"What?" Yemon asked, somewhat surprised, "Tatsuki, I'm not- Damn, didn't we go through this already? I told you before I'm not here to judge you."

"It's like..." Tatsuki continued, as if she hadn't heard him, "it's like everything I've done to survive..."

Without thinking, Yemon reached from where he was laying to Tatsuki and, grabbing her, pushed her to his chest, embracing her. She gasped in surprise, and struggled for half a moment just by instinct, only to go very still afterwards.

_Nobody has ever told you that it's okay to be alive?_

"It's okay. Tatsuki, it's okay, it's fine," Yemon spoke softly, stroking her hair, "you're alive, you're supposed to be alive. You don't have to feel bad about that."

"But everything," Tatsuki spoke as she buried her face in Yemon's clothes, grasping them tightly with her right hand, "just to stay alive... why... just why..."

"You don't have to feel bad for being alive. You're supposed to be happy. Stop beating yourself up."

Tatsuki nodded wordlessly, and Yemon let her be for a while until she appeared to have calmed down.

"It was this Orihime girl, wasn't it?" He asked calmly.

Tatsuki's reaction was a lot sharper, she gasped and shot up like a jack-in-the-box, hitting her head once again with the top of the bunk.

"Ay-chacha, dammit that hurt," she muttered unhappily.

"Do be careful," Yemon said, smirking.

"Don't be a smartass," she spat back, rubbing her head.

Yemon merely smiled and waited for her to stop, and after a few moments she did. They looked at each other for a while, until Tatsuki sat forward again, looking at the ground. Yemon waited with infinite patience.

"Yes," she finally said, a simple and very terse word.

"What happened?"

"Yemon," she replied softly, "please don't ask me that."

"Have you ever talked with anyone about it? At all?" Yemon asked, and waited for a few seconds before continuing when Tatsuki didn't say anything, "you have to get it off your chest. Maybe I'm just a kid who doesn't know much, but for what is worth, please trust me. I'm a Kurosaki, right?"

"I just don't know what to make of you," she sighed, "all the years in the wasteland are like a blur, I can barely remember what I've been doing or how long it's been," she spoke slowly, pausing every few words, "but since I've met you, all these memories... I feel like I'm moving back in time..."

"You mean you don't really remember things?"

"Oh no, I remember all that... I remember too well," she shook her head slowly, "I remember all the time, I remember when I don't want to..."

Yemon reached out and grabbed Tatsuki's hand. She didn't react at first, it was several moments later that she finally squeezed it lightly, after a sigh.

"Do you... Do you know who Aizen was?"

"Yes. Gran-gran told me about the Shinigami war."

"I didn't know what was happening at first. Orihime... Orihime was my friend, my best friend, together with Ichigo. The sweetest girl in the world. She... She was kidnapped, I didn't know at the time what had happened to her. Back then I was able to feel her presence, and it suddenly vanished one day. Ichigo wouldn't say a word, I knew that he knew what had happened, but he wouldn't say anything, until he disappeared going after her, without saying goodbye."

Tatsuki shook her head and continued.

"What an idiot. He was acting all cold and shit, like he was trying to push us away so that we wouldn't get hurt or something. I heard from Sandal-hat Urahara about it when he left, he was going to rescue Orihime, and there was a big danger coming. Aizen and his army, I learned later. I didn't know anything, all I knew is that I just wanted my friends back.

"At some point Karakura was teleported somewhere, and everyone in town fell unconscious. Including me. It was something Urahara had made to keep everyone safe for the fight. We were sent to Soul Society, and a fake town put in place. I woke up with everyone unconscious, and with the town in a strange place. I roamed about, but couldn't find anyone else who was awake like me. I don't know how long I had been out, hours probably. All I know is that after all that walking, I came upon Aizen. Or Aizen found me, I don't know. He was with some other dude, a very creepy guy with narrow eyes. They knew I was a friend of Ichigo. I didn't know why they knew, or why they knew Ichigo, all I knew was that that guy... That guy..."

Tatsuki started trembling noticeably, and squeezed Yemon's hand hard. He responded with a reassuring squeeze of his own, but didn't say a word. After a while, Tatsuki had calmed down enough to continue.

"It was horrible. He said he was going to hang my body somewhere for Ichigo to see. I couldn't even move when he came to me, I felt crushed by his power, like I was going to break apart. I remember... I remember the pain... When he stabbed me... And he gutted me... And... And..."

"It's okay Tatsuki," Yemon said softly, "it's okay."

"It was so horrible," she sniffled once, and continued, "and he killed me. I'm sure of it. I was dead. Dead. And when I thought I was going to go away, I felt something pulling me back, and I woke up again. I saw Orihime, she was crying, looking at me. I asked her not to cry, but I'm not sure my voice came through. But she smiled, while she was crying. Orihime had brought me back, I was inside the amber shield of her little fairies," she raised her free hand and looked at it, and then searched her hair for the missing hairclips, "and I was... I was alive, and everything Aizen had done to me, it was all going away."

"Wow," Yemon said, unable to let something like that pass without a word.

"All I could see at first was Orihime. My dear Orihime... I only noticed that everything was wrong around me when it was too late. The sky was like a giant black hole, and everything around us was disappearing into it, buildings, people, they were all turning to dust, and the dust was blowing up to the sky. I told Orihime to run. I told her to go away. I swear I did. I yelled, and pleaded, and begged, but... But she wouldn't. She stayed there, smiling, crying, healing me, and protecting me. I'm the one who was supposed to protect her. It was always me. It had to be me. But she stayed, and when... When it was her turn, she just smiled, and asked me to live, and... And even when she was gone, her shield stayed with me, until it was over and I was safe."

Tatsuki had to stop at that point, while tears streamed down her face. Once again, Yemon softly pulled her down to his chest, embracing her gently, and this time there was no resistance. Yemon let Tatsuky cry, she did very softly, choking it back as if unwilling to let it show. They stayed like that for a long while, until Tatsuki pushed herself up, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hands.

"So she saved you, and you lived, like she told you to do," Yemon ventured.

"Yes... I lived... I did everything to survive. Everything, Yemon. Everything!"

Yemon simply smiled softly. Tatsuki sniffled and turned away, getting back to her sitting position.

"Why did she have to die," Tatsuki mumbled.

"I don't know," Yemon replied, "but she died protecting her dear friend. I would have done the same... And so would you."

"She died because of me," Tatsuki said in a hoarse voice, "if I..."

"It was not your fault. _Nobody_ could do anything in that damn war. _Nobody._ That's why things are as they are now."

"Can you believe I was happy she was dead? Can you?"

Tatsuki looked at Yemon, but when he returned her gaze, she quickly looked away.

"No, I can't, and I don't think you can either."

"I can. I did. When it was all over, I was happy. Happy..."

"You here happy to be alive," Yemon interrupted, prompting Tatsuki to take a sharp breath, "that's _very_ different."

"It's the same!"

"The hell it is! You're not letting yourself be happy to be alive, and that's not fair to Orihime!"

"What?" Tatsuki turned to Yemon, looking somewhat confused and angry at the same time.

"When you're happy to be alive, you can be _grateful _towards Orihime! And you can remember her with happiness! You're not supposed to be sad when you remember someone you love! Stop being unfair to both of you!"

She reeled slightly as she was sitting, and turned away from Yemon without a word, clenching her fists tightly. Yemon waited for a reaction, but nothing was forthcoming.

_Ah well, it's not like she can get over something like this in a day. We've done enough I think. Damn, I wish we were in the Vault, Gran-gran would probably be able to help her. Still, that's a lot of shit she's gone through._

"Tatsuki, can I ask you something?"

"You just did."

"Right," Yemon chuckled, "I'm just wondering something, you don't have to answer if you don't want to."

She turned to Yemon and looked at him without saying a word.

"You're not a soul, I can tell that much. You're... Well, you feel human, but if you were there that day, that makes you, what, a hundred plus years old?"

"It's been that long already?" She muttered.

"Yes, we're in... Wait," he fiddled with his pip-boy, and showed it to Tatsuki, "it's the year 2111 by the old calendar, see?"

"Uh-huh."

"Well, the implied question is how have you lived so long as a human while still looking like you were that day?"

"I'm not fully human anymore," she spoke as she turned away, "when Orihime healed me... I ended up like this. I don't know why. It's like my soul and my body merged wrong, maybe... Maybe because Soul Society and the real world were merging together too. That's the only thing I've been able to come up with."

"I see. I was a bit confused there."

"As usual."

"Hah!" Yemon laughed once, "she's back ladies and gentlemen!"

Tatsuki turned to Yemon and, despite the tension, managed a faint smile.

"Shall we go then? I want to buy some RadAway and get some food," she said.

"Sure. Wait, why do you want RadAway? Have you gotten radiation poisoning?"

"Probably, you too I bet."

"What? I don't think so, I've been careful after you cleared me of it," Yemon replied, surprised, as he fiddled with his Pip-boy; his eyes opened wide when he reached the internal radiation reading, "how the hell did I get thirty rads in me?"

"Welcome to the wasteland, Yemon. Everything's radioactive, except for the water you filter," she said as she stood up, "there's a reason why there's so much RadAway around, it's about the only thing that's still mass produced in this shithole."

Yemon flicked off the radiation monitor shaking his head. They left the common room after a very quick wash and headed off to the Darkwaters shop.

"Yemon, what's with the mutt? He's following you everywhere."

"Ah yes, I don't think you've been properly introduced," Yemon replied, smiling, "Dogmeat, this is Tatsuki. Tatsuki, Dogmeat."

Tatsuki looked at the dog, who was returning her gaze with a far too intelligent expression on his face.

"Where did you find him?" She asked Yemon.

"I gave him a igana-on-a-stick, and I guess he was hungry, weren't you boy?"

Dogmeat barked excitedly, wagging his tail.

"You wasted an iguana-on-a-stick on a dog?" Tatsuki asked surprised, looking at the grey mutt, who returned her gaze with a small whine.

"Waste?"

"It's an iguana-on-a-stick! Best food in the wasteland! One bite will feed a hundred souls or a hungry raider! The ultimate..."

"Okay, okay, sheesh," Yemon interrupted, "it's just an iguana, didn't think it was such a big deal."

Yemon was somewhat disappointed they had missed the caravan, but he wasn't feeling like travelling much anyway. They managed to find one stimpack at the Darkwaters, got half a dozen RadAway bags from the clinic, and by mid morning they had left Junktown, with a much lighter bag of caps and a couple of new destinations on the Pip-boy. The wasteland was as hot, dry, and dusty as ever.

"I have to say, Tatsuki, that was a pretty impressive bag of caps. Did you swindle them or..."

"What's that?" She replied, annoyed, "I played totally fair, you muppet."

"Yeah, yeah," Yemon smirked, while he examined the stimpack, "what's with the stimpacks anyway? This one's white, the one you showed me yesterday was red..."

"I prefer not to think about it," Tatsuki said, taking the stimpack and pocketing it, "considering how they're made, the colour is the least of my worries."

"Uh," Yemon looked up as he thought, "I guess you're right, injecting myself with hollow extract is a bit squicky."

"How far is this place?"

"Well," Yemon replied as he tinkered with the Pip-boy, "according to Killian it's two dais going East-Southeast..."

Yemon had quieted down, and when Tatsuki looked at him, she noticed he was fixed on the Pip-boy with a look that gave away the churning of the gears in his head.

"What's wrong?" She asked, stopping.

"I was just thinking, take a look," Yemon said as he showed Tatsuki the Pip-boy map, "I was just looking at this, see? Shady Sands is up here, then Southeast is Junktown, and according to Killian it's five days South to get to The Hub, and five days Southwest from there to get to the Boneyard."

"So?"

"Dunno, doesn't it look like it's making a big circle? What's in the middle?"

"What?" Tatsuki looked at Yemon with an expression of surprise, "what the hell are you talking about?"

"Doesn't it-"

"Don't be ridiculous, Yemon," she finished, turning around and resuming her march, while leaving Yemon more than a bit confused.

They travelled with only a few rests until shortly before dusk, when they found a likely spot to spend the night inside a broken down old bus. After a short examination, they made their way to the flat spot at the very back.

"Not a bad place to spend the night," Tatsuki said, nodding approvingly.

"I guess so," Yemon replied distractedly, creating and dismissing his Quincy bow a few times.

"What the heck are you doing Yemon? You've been doing that all day, and it's getting on my nerves; reiatsu up, reiatsu down, do you want to drag every hollow in the wasteland to us?"

"Huh? No, no, just practising, I need to get used to this," he explained, "and also... well, it's better to show it I guess, look."

He raised his left arm, closed his eyes and, after a few slow and deep breaths, started to raise his reiatsu. The Quincy symbol glowed brightly, and a moment later a bow materialized, a much shorter bow barely half a meter long. Before it stabilized completely, Yemon made it disappear, and it left behind a thin wisp of smoke raising from the palm of his hand.

"What was that?" Tatsuki asked.

"Another bow," Yemon replied, rubbing the palm of his left hand with his right's thumb, "it's possible to make different bows with different power and speed, so I've been trying to get something besides the basic one."

"Huh, really? What do you want a tiny bow like that for?"

"If I manage to pull this one off properly, I could fire arrows with just one hand, which could be useful."

"Hmmm," Tatsuki hummed, as she raised an eyebrow looking at Yemon's hand; their conversation was interrupted when a ferocious growl shot from Tatsuki's stomach.

"Hungry?" Yemon asked, laughing.

"Not really," she replied embarrassed.

"Right, right, let's have some food anyway."

"What about the mutt?" Tatsuki asked, looking at Dogmeat settling quietly at the back of the bus.

"I'd say he's got enough to eat already," Yemon replied, remembering the ghastly lunch Dogmeat had made for himself from an errant mole rat.

Once they had settled, Yemon took the journal out of his pack together with the food and, using the Pip-boy's light, started reading while munching.

"Where did you get sandal-hat's diary?" Tatsuki asked, sitting back next to Yemon and looking at the text.

"Gran-gran gave it to me."

"Really? Where did Karin find it? Or did he give it to her?"

"I... have no idea."

"I see. Are you looking for something in particular?"

"Not really. Well, if there's anything on the vaults it'd be handy, but other than that, getting an idea of what things were like back then, specially Soul Society."

"Hmmm, I see. When I looked back then," Tatsuki said, looking at Yemon to ascertain whether he remembered, "the only vault that was mentioned was Vault 12, besides Vault 14 of course."

"Yeah, it's here," Yemon said as he pointed at a paragraph, "this 12th Division sounds really fucked-up. Specially the Captain."

There was no response from Tatsuki, and when he looked at her, Yemon realized she was chewing her dried food very quietly.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she lied.

"Okay," Yemon said, and got back to his book, "I guess I've pried enough for a day."

"Yemon, please don't start again..."

"No, no, I mean it. Let's just let things be."

When Tatsuki didn't reply, Yemon turned to the diary and continued reading. After a few minutes, Tatsuki interrupted him.

"I'm not going to go into details," she said, and looked at Yemon, who nodded in return, "but that Kurotsuchi Mayuri showed up after Karakura... And in just a few years it's like he was everywhere, and all his crazy inventions..."

"Hmmm, I see. What kind of inventions?" Yemon asked, and when Tatsuki sighed, he quickly rectified, "nevermind, thanks for that Tatsuki."

_I wonder, I guess she's so quiet about this because it happened after the war. Must have been rough._

Tatsuki was the first one to fall asleep, and Yemon stayed up much later, until he had finished reading about the 12th Division. Urahara had a rather detailed list of the, in his words, "important" experiments, which included a lot of things he didn't quite understand.

_Spirit particle exchangers, a mass Senkaimon... Uh, gate to something. I guess it was all for the war, like it says here, but I don't get it. I could ask Tatsuki... Nah, it's not really important, what matters is the chip._

He looked at Tatsuki, who had curled up on the floor and was hugging Dogmeat, who had curled up next to her. He got the blanket out of the bag, tucked Tatsuki in with it, and propped himself in the corner with his back to the wall to spend the night.

"Aaaah! Stop it!"

Yemon woke up with a rush of adrenalin and his heart beating against his ribcage by the sudden yells of Tatsuki. A moment later Dogmeat started barking, adding to the confusion.

"What? What is it? What happened?" He asked, firing questions at a rapid pace in his half-stupor.

"Stupid mutt" Tatsuki yelled again, spitting, "licking my face first thing in the morning like that!"

Yemon looked at Tatsuki, then at Dogmeat, who was wagging his tail and barking like he was having a really fun time, and couldn't help but start laughing.

"What's so goddamn funny?" Tatsuki asked, annoyed.

"And a good morning to you too. Good morning Dogmeat," Yemon laughed again, and stretched as he got up, "what a way to start the day."

"Your stupid mutt!" Tatsuki complained again, "he sneaked in last night, I've got hair all over and I stink of dog!"

"Oh come on, I bet it was warm under the blanket," Yemon turned to Dogmeat, and scratched him behind the ears, "who's a good boy? You are, yes you are."

When they arrived at the mark on Yemon's map, it only took them a few minutes to find what they were looking for. A trail of broken down cars on a demolished road led them to the entrance of a tunnel carved on a cliffside.

"That's it?" Yemon asked, walking with an easy step between the vehicles.

"A tunnel? I don't think this is going to help much."

"Dunno, but why not take a look?"

Yemon talked calmly as he stepped under the entry arch, and turned to look at Tatsuki when she didn't reply. She was standing in front of the mouth of the tunnel, and didn't look like she was going to step in at all.

"What's wrong Tatsuki?"

"This is a waste of time, let's just go."

"We haven't even looked. Killian said some people in Junktown came from here, there's got to be something," Yemon explained, but seeing Tatsuki still undecided, tried again, "what is going on? Are you afraid or something?"

Tatsuki gave Yemon a look that could curl brahmin milk, looked up at the archway, and took one hesitant step before stopping again.

"Woah, woah, easy," Yemon said, putting a hand on her shoulder; he had walked next to her while she hesitated, and she hadn't even noticed, "what do you think is in there? Dogmeat seems happy enough."

"I... I hate going underground," she finally said, stepping back and shaking her shoulder free.

"Oh! Well," Yemon hesitated, "I wasn't... I mean, I wouldn't make fun of that..."

"Yes, yes, can we go?" Tatsuki interrupted.

"No, but you can wait here," Yemon answered, taking his goggles off and tossing them at Tatsuki, "Dogmeat and I can take a look. We won't be long."

Tatsuki looked at Yemon, then at the sky, and sighed, putting the goggles on.

"Okay, okay, but be careful and don't take long, there's not much time until dark."

Tatsuki watched Yemon disappear inside the tunnel, until the green light of the Pip-boy was gone, looking like he had taken a detour. She then turned away and sat down with her back to the cliffside by the tunnel entrance and, putting her hands behind her head, looked at the sky. She hated idle moments like that, which life in the wasteland was made of; all she had to worry about was food and shelter, and if she could find them, there was nothing else to do, and nobody to talk to. Nobody she wanted to talk to.

_Sigh, I thought this was going to be better. I just have nothing to talk about with this kid. Or anyone. I don't want to talk about the war, I don't want to talk about the wasteland either..._

She stirred uncomfortably when the tear on her back gave her a dull jolt. Stupid thing, it still hurt, and she was sure it'd keep hurting for a while. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She still shuddered every time she thought about the whole ordeal, the last time she had begged for death was when Aizen had started gutting her a hundred years ago, and she still remembered it all too vividly.

_Every fucking day that I'm not high, I just want to forget about it, and forget about the mutants, and forget their stupid voices, just like those..._

Tatsuki suddenly snapped to attention.

_Just like those!_

"You find humans here?" A gruff voice asked loudly.

"Boss says look in every hole, this a big hole!" Another one answered.

_Boss? No, it can't be the same. It can't be..._

Her hands were trembling noticeably, and she had broken a cold sweat. She reached for her shotgun, checked that it was properly loaded and, crouched low between the myriad of piled-up cars running all along the broken down road, she listened carefully. The voices were coming closer, and there were many of them. Too many.

_Shit. Shit, shit, shit! What the fuck is Yemon doing? I'll just... No, no, calm down, don't just leave... Shit, what do I do? They're coming here._

She was paralysed in place, holding the shotgun at the ready and crouching behind a large car. She looked around, worried.

_This place's a fucking deathtrap._

"Found you!"

The hoarse voice brought Tatsuki out of her reverie. She was absolutely convinced she had not heard anyone approaching, yet there it was, a large super-mutant holding a mallet and looking like he was about to smash it on her head. She didn't even think about it, she jumped back and started unloading as fast as she could, and on the fifth shot, when the super-mutant's chest had been reduced to a red and white pile of jelly, the shotgun jammed.

"Fuck!" Tatsuki shouted loudly, struggling to pump the shotgun free.

A hail of shots made her crouch behind the car again, as she frantically and ineffectively tried to unjam the gun. Her breathing kept getting faster and faster while her heart tried to beat its way out of her chest.

_Stupid thing, work, work, work, work, work!_

"Gotcha!"

Tatsuki looked up gasping as a super-mutant appeared next to her, brandishing a huge mallet. Everything slowed down in her mind as the super mutant swung back, and with a final snap the shotgun snapped the next shell in place. When She pointed at the super mutant, he was already reaching for her, and he grabbed the end of the gun as she pressed the trigger. There was a splatter of blood as the shot blew through the monster's hand, but didn't stop him from ripping the gun out of her hands.

Her heart felt as if an icy hand pressed around it as she watched the mallet coming towards her. Her legs didn't respond.

_Move. Move! Move move move!_

A glint caught her eye coming from inside the tunnel, and a glowing blue arrow hit the super mutant's arm before he crushed Tatsuki's head. It was severed at the elbow, and she felt the mallet graze her short hair as it shot by and crashed behind her head. It wasn't until Dogmeat rushed in and jumped at the super mutant that she could start moving again.

"Tatsuki!"

"Yemon! Watch out!" She replied.

The shooting continued while Dogmeat wrestled on the ground with the super mutant, and Yemon appeared next to her in a blur of Hyrenkyaku. They both stayed down behind the car until a few moments later, when there was a bang and smoke started rising from the car's front engine.

"Oh shit!" Tatsuki swore, looking around them at the piles of rusted out old cars that surrounded the two of them; they were at the entrance of the tunnel, and surrounded in all outside directions by super mutants. "Run!" She finally shouted.

"What the-"

Tatsuki didn't give Yemon a chance to finish, she stood up and dragged him to his feet, rushing towards the inside of the tunnel.

"We have to hide! Run!" She insisted, "Dogmeat! Run you stupid mutt! Yemon! Service entrance, something!"

"What..?" He tried asking again.

"Yemon!" Tatsuki shouted again, still dragging him.

_The hell's she so scared?_

"To the right, very close!" Yemon finally answered, "we'll- Shit!"

Yemon shouted a string of profanity as he crashed and rolled on the ground, while pain shot from his leg where a bullet had just embedded itself. Tatsuki skidded to a stop and looked back, and in the half-shadow of the tunnel he could see that her face was completely distorted into a stressed grimace. Without losing a moment, she grabbed him, tossed him over her shoulder with surprising ease, and rushed forward, with Dogmeat hot on their heels.

There was a service entrance on the side of the tunnel, and as they crossed the threshold under a hail of bullets, a sudden explosion shook the ground. Tatsuki yelled as she kept rushing, and turned to a stair leading down. More explosions followed the first one, shaking everything even more and making her lose her footing. They rolled down to the bottom of the stairs while the explosions continued inside the tunnel above their heads.

Yemon tried to sit up painfully, and saw that Tatsuki was on the ground in a fetal position, yelling and clutching her head.

"Tatsuki!"

She didn't answer, she continued yelling as the explosions were followed by the rumbling of the tunnel collapsing. Yemon crawled next to her and put his arms around her, placing his body protectively over hers. It felt like an eternity had to pass before the rumblings and the noise ceased.

"It's over," Yemon said, and as Tatsuki didn't stop, he tried more forcefully, "Tatsuki! It's over!" He shouted, holding her and shaking her by the shoulders.

She stopped yelling and opened her eyes, but didn't change position one bit. Yemon saw she was breathing heavily and sweating a lot, and looked terrified.

"It's okay Tatsuki, it's over, we're safe."

"We're trapped," she finally spoke, "we're trapped here, we're trapped again, the bombs are falling, we're trapped..."

"What the... What bombs? Tatsuki, get a hold of yourself!"

Yemon tried to stand up, and his wounded leg gave him a painful reminder of his current condition. When he crashed down face first on the ground, Tatsuki looked up and, gasping, she rushed to his side.

"Shit... Yemon, it's not gone through," she said, still sounding very stressed, with sweat running down her face and trembling hands, "I'm going to have to..."

She didn't finish the phrase, she merely unsheathed her combat knife. Yemon saw her holding the knife with trembling hands and almost tried to stand up and run away.

"Wait, don't-"

"I have to, I'll use the stimpack afterwards. I have to... It's going to hurt Yemon, but I have to..."

_Bloody hell this is insane._

Tatsuki put her weight on Yemon's legs under the knees, and pressed firmly with her left hand next to the bullet wound. Yemon looked away, clenched his teeth and fists, and closed his eyes.

The pain of a knife slicing through his leg was unbelievable, not even the wounds that he had so far taken during combat were like that. Without the adrenalin rush of battle, and the acute awareness of what was happening, it was ten times worse.

Yemon howled in pain and struggled, while Tatsuki held him firmly in place. She continued digging through with the knife while blood flowed down at a good regular rate. She finally put the tip of the knife under the bullet and, with a final cry of pain from Yemon, she levered it to pull the bullet out. Almost immediately she dropped the knife and reached for her only stimpack, and using both hands to try and slow their trembling, she injected it on Yemon's leg, and pressed the wound to close it as skin and muscle regenerated.

She dropped on her back when the wound finally closed, while Yemon tried to get his bearings again after the excruciating torture.

"Bloody... Helll..." He panted, "that fucking hurt..." He turned around and sat up, while the leg only gave him some dull discomfort, and before he could say anything to Tatsuki, the Pip-boy caught his eye, and ear.

It was croaking, slowly but surely; there was a source of low level radiation not far from where they were.

"Shit, Tatsuki, there's radiation..."

"The bombs... It's the bombs..." She said, still laying on the ground facing up.

"Bombs? What bombs?"

"Mushroom clouds... The bombs..."

_Bugger me, so there were nukes._

"Come on, get up," Yemon said, standing up and then helping Tatsuki to her feet, "we have to go, there's radiation leaking in here."

"We're trapped... We're trapped here again..."

Yemon put an arm around the very scared Tatsuki and led her away from the entrance through the service tunnel. After turning a few corners and closing a door behind them, the Pip-boy's croaking died down. He couldn't see too far ahead with only the Pip-boy's light, but the oppressive narrow corridors seemed to weight heavily on Tatsuki's mind, she walked with an uneasy step while refusing to look up.

After some stumbling around, they opened a door to get to another section of the much wider tunnel. There were no cars around that part, and after a while Yemon realized it was a railway.

"Woah, an underground railway. Awesome. See Tatsuki? We'll get out this way, no problem."

Tatsuki looked up and saw the much wider tunnel, but it didn't seem to calm her down one bit. It was still dark past the Pip-boy's light, and no way to see how to get out.

"Can... Can we get out?"

"Sure! Don't worry. Say, what happened back there? You rushed me out just in time, I have no idea what exploded like that, and it was freaking big too."

"Sh... Shut up, Yemon. Can we get out yet?"

"Not yet. Look, the tunnel is opening up. I wonder..."

The tunnel led them to a more open area, still underground but with much higher ceiling, so high the Pip-boy light could barely reach it. There was a platform above the rails they were walking on, and Yemon saw there was an old crashed train in a parallel rail not far from where they were.

Suddenly, Dogmeat started growling.

"What is it boy?"

As if answering his question, there were several growls coming from the darkness, and Yemon felt the fluctuation of several reiatsus he had never felt before.

"What the hell?" He asked, not expecting an answer.


	12. Like Father, Like Son

"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects."

- **Robert Heinlein**

* * *

><p>Yemon tried to pierce through the darkness of the underground area with the clearly insufficient light of the Pip-boy, but all he could see were shadows shifting just beyond the reach of the glow. He felt Tatsuki disengaging herself from him, and when he looked at her, he could see she still had the same tense expression on her face, but was holding the revolver firmly with both hands and following the shadows, same as he was.<p>

"Dogmeat, stay!" Yemon ordered when the dog started to inch away from them, growling and with his ears tucked back.

"We have to get out of here..." Tatsuki muttered.

"I know that!" Yemon replied, only to immediately chide himself mentally for snapping like that. "Any idea what those are?" He asked in a softer voice.

"I don't know..." Tatsuki replied in a trembling voice, "I don't go underground... Not anymore... I don't..."

"Okay, okay," Yemon mollified her, "let's just-"

They were interrupted when, with a loud hiss, one of the shadows broke from the group and rushed at them. Yemon called his Quincy bow and let go of an arrow in record time for him, while Tatsuki fired three times and, as far as Yemon could tell, missed completely with all three.

His arrow, however, managed to hit the thing on the chest. It looked like a small humanoid hollow, with a wiry, almost bone-thin frame. The most striking thing was that both mask and whatever "flesh" it still had appeared almost melted down from its bones.

It was worse than hideous, it looked like the incarnation of the eternal suffering one could expect from a cheery place such as Hell, while the image was punctuated with the irregular croaking of his Pip-boy.

"What the fuck?" Yemon shouted in disbelief.

A second one of the shadows had broken out towards them, then a third did the same, and soon they found themselves at the receiving end of a veritable river of ghouls. Tatsuki fired the last bullets of her revolver without much success and, having no time to reload, she holstered it and pulled out her combat knife. It was all they had time to do.

The first ghoul had given Yemon a reasonable idea of how weak each individual ghoul was. A single arrow could down one, and if lined up properly, he was sure it could down two or more. But he was looking at dozens of them, and he was not so good with the bow yet.

_This is insane._

He let go of an arrow to take one down right as it was about to claw at him, and quickly moved to a side with a short Hyrenkyaku. As he did, he saw Tatsuki fighting two ghouls with good success; she had taken one down and had stabbed it in the chest with her knife, and was preparing to turn to the second one on top of her when he moved. As he did, the light of the Pip-boy moved with him, and the sudden dance of shadows and change of light so disoriented her that she lost the initiative and found herself on the floor trying desperately to hold off the ghoul clawing at her.

_Shit! _"Tatsuki!" Yemon shouted

It was Dogmeat who rushed in and threw himself at the ghoul. As soon as he did, Tatsuki gave the demented thing a kick with all her strength, and rolled out to stand up in the same move.

She didn't even reproach Yemon when he rushed to her side, taking down another ghoul with a second Quincy arrow.

"Do you see an exit?" She asked, panting.

"No. We should go back-" He started to respond, and paused long enough to fire two arrows, and for Tatsuki to duck under a ghoul's attack, knife its legs, and crush its skull with a well placed kick. "Back to the tunnel. It's narrower and easier to defend."

Yemon heard Tatsuki mutter a string of profanity, but she didn't raise any objections out loud.

_She's not liking it one bit, but- Oh look at that!_

"Found an exit!" Yemon said, and without thinking he started rushing towards one direction, dragging Tatsuki with him.

"Dogmeat! This way you stupid mutt!" Tatsuki shouted.

The three of them made it past an open door and, while Yemon fired arrows randomly through it as fast as he could, Tatsuki found the control lever and, with much grinding of unoiled metal, managed to slam it shut. It was a solid security metal door, and despite the pounding of the ghouls on the other side, it held firm.

"Whew, what the hell were those things?" Yemon said, wiping the dirty sweat from his brow. "Tatsuki?" He insisted, when he noticed she wasn't responding.

She was looking behind him with a tense expression, sweat still running down her face, but not saying a word. Yemon turned quickly, fearing the worst, but there was nothing there. It appeared to be a very large storage room, with rusted down machinery, pipes, and all sorts of parts, but little else.

"What's wrong?" He tried again.

"We're trapped," Tatsuki finally replied.

_Well damn, she's really got a bad case of claustrophobia, we're not in here for one second and she's already losing it. _Yemon thought. "Let's just check what's in here, shall we?" He continued out loud invitingly, casting the light of the Pip-boy about. It was still croaking, and when he followed the noise, he ended up pointing at Tatsuki's knife.

"What?" She asked.

"Tatsuki, I think those things are radioactive. Look."

The croaking was not excessive, but the blood-stained knife was letting out a low dose of radiation. Tatsuki tried to wipe it clean with a very old rag she found after some searching, while Yemon continued to explore the gigantic room.

He came to a stop when he saw some low light coming from up ahead.

"Tatsuki!" He called in a hoarse whisper, flicking the Pip-boy off and crouching behind a pile of tubes.

Tatsuki joined him and, after a few minutes listening and hearing nothing, they came out slowly and walked towards the light source in the far corner. In the dim light Yemon finally managed to make out a desk with a small desklight on top of it, next to a rotten-out bunk bed. But none of that managed to catch his attention as much as the apparent owner of that refuge.

"Shit..." Tatsuki muttered after a long hissing breath in.

Hanging from a chain attached to a pipe on the ceiling was a skeleton, or rather half a skeleton, the top half of the person who hanged himself in that remote forgotten corner of the world. The other half of it laid in a pile of bones underneath.

"That looks really old," Yemon commented, failing to think of anything less idiotic to say.

Tatsuki didn't answer. She was rooted to her spot, looking at the skeleton with unblinking eyes.

"Tatsuki, let's see if we can find another exit."

"What if we can't?" She asked, still looking at the skeleton.

"Well, in that case we'll have to fight our way out. How many bullets do you have left?"

"This gun is useless," she said, grabbing it and showing it to Yemon, "can't stop those things with this. It's useless..."

Yemon had wanted to ask about the shotgun, but he had a good idea of where she had lost it.

_Regardless, I have to get her out of here somehow._

"Okay, look, I'll go take a look and see what I can find," he said as he looked around, "why don't you wait here with Dogmeat and-"

He stopped talking when his eyes fell on a large worktable not far from where they were. There were a lot of pieces of machinery arranged around it, and a large sheet of thick blue paper on top with some drawings.

"Yemon? What is it?"

"Hm, this could be interesting..."

Tatsuki followed Yemon to the worktable, and looked over his shoulder at the blueprints he had bent down to examine. She couldn't make much sense out of them, however.

"What's that?"

Yemon didn't answer, he was muttering to himself, and grinning.

"Yemon?" Tatsuki insisted.

"Change of plans," he finally answered, turning to Tatsuki and still grinning, "why don't you take that light and see if you can find more of these?"

He was pointing at a bundle of railway spikes sitting on top of the workbench.

"Eh?"

"You were saying that gun is useless, so let's try to give you a bit more firepower."

She looked at Yemon with some confusion, but he had turned to the bench and, putting the blueprints carefully aside, was sorting through the various plies of junk with great interest. Sighing, Tatsuki called Dogmeat and, after taking the small light and the fission battery it was attached to, went off to root through the rows of shelves in search of more railway spikes.

She was back less than an hour later with a pile of them, huffing and puffing due to the awkward way she had to carry them in her arms. She had kicked up enough hundred-year-old dust to cover herself ten times over, and looked none-too-happy about it as she dropped the spikes next to the workbench and shook her head and hair.

Yemon didn't even acknowledge her. He was fussing about with a large pipe with several valves and other tubes attached, and only muttered a distant "thanks" when Tatsuki put the light on the workbench next to him.

With another sigh, she sat down cross-legged with her back to the wall. Dogmeat made a cautious whine as he, too, sat down next to her, and put his head on her lap.

"What a stubborn master you have," Tatsuki spoke softly, scratching Dogmeat behind the ears, "once he gets an idea he sticks to it like glue."

There was no reply. She took a final look at the oppressively low room they were trapped in and closed her eyes, trying to suppress the nervousness of being trapped like a rat.

_Again._

She didn't know how long it had been when a loud hiss suddenly woke her up. Yemon was cursing with complete abandon and hammering at something on the workbench. When the hissing finally stopped, he let go of whatever it was he was handling and, after a few moments, stood back up and stretched his back.

"Bloody hell, that was close."

"What was?"

Yemon turned to Tatsuki and smiled.

"You're awake! Just in time too, take a look," he replied enthusiastically, and picked up the contraption he had been working on, "I've got you a new gun!"

"Uh... What in the name of... What's that thing?"

"Well, the blueprints didn't have a name. We could call it the Railway Rifle?"

Tatsuki raised an eyebrow as he looked at the thing Yemon was presenting to her. It was more than a meter long, with a huge series of tubes in the front, a very crude stock on the back, and what appeared to be a _freaking pressure cooker_ caught in the middle.

"You're not serious," she concluded.

"What? You don't like it?"

"Does that thing even work? And what does it... Wait a minute, it's supposed to shoot railway spikes?"

"Yup! I was about to test it actually, want to watch?"

"Sure," she answered, standing up and walking a fair distance away from Yemon. "Go ahead!" She called, hiding behind a loaded shelf.

"O ye of little faith," Yemon replied, smirking, "let see... Okay this will do."

He put a large tube standing vertical on the lone desk, took a few steps back and, placing the stock firmly against his shoulder, aimed carefully and pressed the release valve.

The rifle made an extremely loud hiss, followed by a two-note "toot-toot" sound, and the kick nearly knocked him off his feet, making him lose sight of his target. When he looked at it again, he couldn't contain a laugh.

The spike had, literally, nailed the tube to the wall, piercing completely through it and bending it in such a way that it looked like it had been made out of cardboard instead of steel. Tatsuki came out of her hiding spot and stood next to Yemon, looking at the pipe with huge surprised eyes.

"So, to answer your question, it _does_ work," Yemon said, smirking at her and offering the rifle.

"That's... Wow, really," Tatsuki admitted, taking the rifle from Yemon's hands. "Ungh, and it's heavy too."

"Yes, not much of a choice there. Mind the pressure cooker, it's actually quite hot. It's got a fission battery attached to the resistance in there to boil up the water, you can regulate it here," Yemon explained, pointing at a gauge on one side, "and you can see the pressure on the dial here in front. I've got it pretty high now, we may want to try other settings..."

"And how do I reload?" She asked, forgetting in an instant her misgivings about the homemade weapon.

"Here," Yemon opened the top of the steam gauge assembly to show the ammo chamber, "you can just drop them in, up to eight at a time, they get caught properly when this part here rotates. If you try to fire it with no spikes in, it'll spin like crazy and lose pressure, so don't try. I also found this bag for carrying the spikes," he added, pointing at an old leather pouch on the floor, "it's pretty old, but seems to be holding together."

"Great," Tatsuki replied, trying the different parts of the gun and weighting it while pointing ahead. She shot a single spike that went through the same steel tube on the wall, giving it a new bend and almost throwing her off her feet too. "Woah, that's quite a kick."

"Yes, and considering how heavy it is, that's telling something. Oh, also gave it something extra," he added, flicking a switch on the side of the gun and making a light at the end of it come to life, "used that lamp that was kicking about. It should help a lot, hopefully I won't disorient you again with my light when I move."

"Handy," she agreed, flicking the light off. "So now what?"

Yemon looked at Tatsuki, and the two of them didn't say a word for several heartbeats. It was Yemon who broke the dense silence.

"We're going to have to fight our way through."

"Figures," Tatsuki sighed.

"Are you okay Tatsuki?"

"Yes. No," she shook her head and adjusted the canteen strap over her shoulder. "I'll manage. But we need a plan. Yemon," she suddenly spoke in a completely different tone, "how much water did you drink while I was asleep?"

"I didn't, it's all in the pressure cooker."

"Oh. Figures."

"Yes. And as far as the plan goes, take a look."

He pointed at the Pip-boy screen, where the automapper had drawn a crude outline of the underground passages. Tatsuki examined it carefully before offering anything.

"That's the only way?" She asked, pointing at the only open end in the map.

"Yep. Up the stairs to the top platform. Then off to this corridor... And hopefully outside."

"That's a lot to hope for..." Tatsuki muttered.

Yemon gave her a speculative look. She was looking at the Pip-boy very intently, and all the focus she seemed to have regained after her nap and handling the new weapon seemed to be evaporating right before his very eyes.

_I really shouldn't ask her until we're outside. If we make it._

"Let's go Tatsuki, there's no point in wasting any more time here."

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and, exhaling slowly without opening them, nodded. After she picked up her bag of ammo, they made towards the only door in the room, where Dogmeat was already sniffing and growling audibly. Yemon headed for the opening lever, and Tatsuki positioned herself behind the door, Rifle at the ready.

"Dogmeat," Yemon called, "I want you to stay close to me."

Dogmeat looked at Yemon, and for the life of her, Tatsuki could swear the freaking mutt actually nodded at him.

_That dog is way too smart._

"You too Tatsuki," he added, reaching back to his oversized knife.

"What? You aren't going to use your fancy bow?"

"No. You've got more than enough punch there, I can cover you when you reload. And as soon as I see an opening, I'm grabbing both of you and we're making a break for it with Hyrenkyaku."

"Huh. Can you actually do shunpo while carrying someone?"

"Not shunpo. Hyrenkyaku," Yemon corrected.

"Aaah, same difference. But can you?"

"Yes. Well, I think so at least, I don't have to carry you for long. Why don't we try now?"

"Nah, it's fine," Tatsuki interrupted him, "as long as you can. Let's just get the hell out of here."

"Agreed. Ready?"

For an answer, Tatsuki primed her gun, flicked its light on, and placed it firmly against her shoulder, aiming at the closed door. Yemon unsheathed his knife, took a deep breath, and threw the lever of the door open. For a few seconds nothing happened, but as soon as they took two steps past the doorframe a chorus of familiar hisses greeted them.

"Go!" Yemon shouted, rushing ahead towards the stairs of the underground train platform with Dogmeat hot on his heels.

Tatsuki gave herself a few meters and followed him at a distance. It went against every fiber of her being to just ignore what was ahead of her, trusting Yemon to take care of it, and concentrate on whatever was coming at them from the sides. The first hollow-ghoul her light fell on ended up headless and armless, after three spikes made close to mincemeat out of him in extremely quick succession. She was too tense, and too stressed, to really appreciate her handywork, merely continuing to search for targets as they moved along.

A second ghoul dropped with only two spikes in it, the fist tearing its leg and pinning it to the ground, and the second sending it flying several meters and beyond the lit zone, to crash in the midst of a chorus of ghoul screams. Somewhere nearby Dogmeat was in a scuffle that ended with a bone-crunching sound and a bark. As she moved her aim along, she had a moment to see Yemon slice through a ghoul and kick a second one on the chest, but she was quickly distracted by two more of them getting too close to comfort to her.

Two more spikes, and they were down, but not before a third one suddenly appeared right behind them, quite literally jumping at Tatsuki. Without even blinking, she spun the heavy rifle with both hands to give the ghoul a hit on the face with its stock, and finally nailing it down to the floor with the last spike in the gun, leaving it to claw in agony at its chest while fruitlessly attempting to move from the spot.

"Reload!" She shouted.

She tried at best she could not to fumble while reloading. She went through the steps with a forced slowness, first opening the chamber, then grabbing a bundle of spikes, placing them in, removing the stap bundling them together-

"Holy shit!"

Yemon's shout completely broke her concentration. When she looked up, she had to do a double take of what she saw. Another of those ghouly hollow things, not unlike the rest, but that one was, quite literally, glowing. A bright green glow.

And the Pip-boy's geiger counter was going ballistic.

Tatsuki slammed the chamber shut and quicky raised the rifle to shoot, but all she got was a hissing sound and an internal clanking as the rotating chamber failed to nab the spikes.

_Shit. Dammit don't do this now! _She cursed mentally, giving the gun a vigorous shake until she got a loud snap out of it. _Yes!_

"Yemon, down!"

Yemon ducking and Tatsuki firing were off only by milliseconds, and not a moment too soon as the spike that sent the glowing ghoul flying was the only thing that saved Yemon from getting a very nasty radioactive clawmark on him.

However, all she had eyes for was the glowing ghoul. She kept firing at it even as it kept being pushed back by the inertia of the shots, and only stopped when it hit the wall at the end of the room, and stayed nailed to it.

Yemon had eyes for more than that. The glowing ghoul had been quite the nasty surprise, but while Tatsuki kept it at bay he realized something else. He realized that even the other ghouls were giving it a wide berth. By the time Tatsuki had finished with it, there was a straight path across the room for them to follow if they were fast.

_And I'm fast enough!_

"Dogmeat! Come!" Yemon shouted, rushing back as Tatsuki fired her last spike.

He grabbed the dog with one arm, put the other awkwardly around Tatsuki's waist while still dragging his oversized knife in a reverse grip, and with a final "hold on!" meant more for reassurance than as an order, he pushed ahead with Hyrenkyaku. It was the shortest he had done to date, and had to land just a few feet from the starting point. But with no time to waste, he continued with several uninterrupted steps until mere seconds later they landed with a crash at the end of the top platform in the tube station, with a curse from Tatsuki and a yelp from Dogmeat.

"Let's go!" Tatsuki yelled as she stood up, helping the desperately panting Yemon up to his feet and dragging him along the passageway.

Behind them, the army of ghouls had fallen into disarray, and judging by the noises they were scattering in all directions in search of their disappeared prey. It didn't matter. Nothing mattered, neither the ghouls, nor the exhausted Yemon. Because she could see light.

Blessed, soft, warm, inviting light. A narrow crevice at the end of the corridor, letting a thin line of brightness creep into the tunnel.

She didn't even notice that she was literally dragging Yemon at that point, and running at such speed he'd have needed Hyrenkyaku to keep up. She dumped him unceremoniously on the ground as she banged the rusted old door with her foot, and kept kicking and pulling and clawing at the metallic gate without getting any reward for her efforts.

"OPEN YOU STUPID DOOR!"

*Wham*

*Wham*

*WHAM*

"Tatsuki!"

She snapped her head back at Yemon when he dragged her away from the door by pulling at her collar. It took her a heartbeat to remember he was there and where they were.

"What? Let go! I'm-"

"I know. Let me will ya?"

Yemon let go and, with perfect composure, planted himself firmly a meter away from the metallic gate of the metro station, raised his cleaver with both hands and, taking a deep breath, hacked with all his might downwards through the crevice. There was a very loud noise of metal grinding against metal, with a chorus of snapping sounds as the blade reduced much of the rusted metal to shards. Two more hits and the doors were free from each other.

The crashing and hissing noises behind them had intensified as the ghouls drew nearer, but between the two of them they pulled the rusty door open under an infernal grinding noise. Tatsuki rushed outside as soon as the opening was big enough to let her out, and Yemon had to finish opening to squeeze through all by himself.

When he reached topside, blinked repeatedly in the blinding morning light, he heard some ghoul hisses behind him, followed by Tatsuki's rifle.

"Come on you bastards! Afraid of the light?"

She emptied the gun three times before stopping, and when Yemon finally got used to the brightness, he saw there was a rather impressive collection of limbs nailed to the metro station's half-opened doors.

"Isn't that a bit excessive?" He asked in a slightly playful voice, eyeing the panting Tatsuki with curiosity.

She didn't look scared anymore. Not even close.

"Serves the bastards right. They can crawl back into their hole using their fucking tongues for all I care."

Yemon shook his head and consulted the Pip-boy. It was nine in the morning, and they had moved about ten miles south during their little underground adventure. The metro station's entrance was the best kept structure of what looked like the old ruins of some city. The geiger counter didn't look too bad, but the radiation levels were slightly above the background level inside the Vault.

He was having trouble looking around in the bright morning light.

"Tatsuki, do you still have my goggles somewhere?"

"Eh? Me?"

"I gave them to you when I went into the tunnel first, remember?"

"Oh, right," she nodded as she remembered, but after a few seconds thinking and checking her few pockets, she realized she must have lost them during the battle. "Sorry, I think I've lost them."

"Ah well," Yemon concluded, with a sigh, "guess I should get used to the light out here anyway. Want to put some distance between us and this place?"

"You bet!" Tatsuki replied, smirking. She shouldered her gun, adjusted the bag of spikes and the canteen, and followed Yemon as he resumed the march South towards The Hub.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>

_ Blackout1170:_ Railway Rifle FTW, my favourite weapon too! (And in a game with gatling lasers and mini-nukes, that's saying something!). Haven't really thought about the shishkebab, it doesn't really fit these two though. I've always been a sniper kind of person in the Fallout games :)


	13. The Strangeness of Travel Companions

**Author's Note: **Yes, I know, I said I rarely put notes up, but I had to this time, because there's something I _have_ to say.

Ever since I put down the first rough outline for the fic, I've been looking forward to getting to this particular point. _Really _looking forward to it :-)

* * *

><p>"You should never be in the company of anyone with whom you would not want to die."<p>

- **Duncan Idaho****, **explaining a Fremen saying, _God Emperor of Dune._

* * *

><p>The restless night and disorderly flight from the ghouls had left Yemon rather drained, so he was very grateful for the break when they took refuge under the shade of the only surviving tall structure in the ruins, a contraption of twisted, rusted metal beams and piles of concrete rubble. He puffed and wiped the dirty sweat from his brow after sitting down, and gratefully took a cautious sip of water from the canteen Tatsuki offered him.<p>

"Drink some more Yemon, I can't have you passing out on me," she ordered. "You really can't stand the heat, can you?"

"I'm not used to it," Yemon spoke softly, "the Vault was always much cooler than this."

He unslung his backpack and weapon, and laid down with his eyes closed. He still missed the Vault, even if he was starting to get more used to the wasteland it was still not his place. With a sigh, he reached out and scratched Dogmeat's muzzle when he started sniffing his hand.

Tatsuki looked at him and smiled. She had fallen asleep almost like that in the underground, but at the bottom end of a combination of an anxiety attack, a very late hour, and a massive fight fleeing from the ghouls; and even then her sleep had been light and jittery, with the only small mercy being she didn't remember the dreams she felt hadn't been pleasant at all. Yemon always fell asleep with an ease that she absolutely envied.

_No worries, no anxieties, he just closes his eyes and sleeps like a log. Except the day I fished him out of the river of course... What a haul I got that day._

When Yemon woke up he thought he had heard a shot somewhere, but after listening closely, and realizing Dogmeat was quietly laying down without a worry in the world, he realized it wasn't shots he was hearing.

"Ugh, what's Tatsuki doing..."

***Wham***

He rubbed his eyes and stood up, blinking uneasily under the glare of the Sun. He spotted Tatsuki easily enough by following the sound.

***Wham***

As he walked towards her, Yemon saw she was going over the same moves over and over, slow and methodically, and finishing with either a kick or a punch on a rather large rusty steel beam, around which she had tied the blanket they shared.

***Wham***

"Dammit..." Tatsuki muttered.

***Wham***

"Dammit!" She repeated, somewhat louder.

***Wham***

"I'm..."

***Wham***

"Not!"

***Wham***

"WEAK!"

***Wham***

"Tatsuki!"

Yemon put his hand on her shoulder as he shouted her name for the third time, and her reaction was instantaneous, turning and hitting his arm with her elbow as she did, and using the spin to lunge at him with her other fist. He reacted well to deflect her punch to the side, and again to deflect her second counter with his elbow in a sharp down-move as he stepped back. They gazed at each other for a few moments, until Tatsuki finally looked like she recognized him.

She, however, did not lower her guard. Yemon did lower his, but didn't relax completely.

_Guess I startled her._

"Don't do that again," Tatsuki said in a slow, flat voice.

"I called you three times and you wouldn't answer," Yemon retorted, and only continued after fruitlessly waiting for Tatsuki to say something. "What's wrong with you?"

"Yes, what's wrong with me? Huh?"

She didn't give Yemon enough time to be confused, charging ahead and forcing him to defend himself. He felt that Tatsuki wasn't going all out, he had seen her in life-or-death situations and she lacked that intensity at the time. But she wasn't just sparring with him.

"What the fuck is wrong with me?" She asked again, louder and angrier, as she tried to land a punch on Yemon.

He ducked under it and was forced to step aside awkwardly when Tatsuki countered with her elbow down instead of using her other arm. Without letting Yemon regain his footing, she made a sweep which landed squarely on his ankle, dropping him to the ground on his back.

He grunted in pain as the impact sent a wave of pain through his still wounded back. Immediately after, and much to his surprise, Tatsuki slapped him.

"What the hell!" She protested angrily, grabbing him by the collar and pushing his face up to within an inch of hers. "Why didn't you dodge that?"

Yemon took a moment to consider his answer. She looked very hyper, but more than that she looked like she wanted something. Or she wanted to _do_ something. He couldn't tell, but had the feeling that his best course of action was to keep at it against her.

"You got me pretty damn good. Threw me off with that elbow, I didn't-"

"You could have used shunpo!" She interrupted. "Do you think I'm that useless? That you can just beat me without any effort?"

_Hell if I do! _He though, but spoke in a softer tone. "I can't just... Look, I _don't_ think you're useless... do _you_?"

Tatsuki didn't answer at first. Yemon could see her jaw working hard, gritting her teeth as she put her ideas in order; or so he thought. When she finally spoke, she sounded like she was forcing each word out of her throat against their very own will.

"Do you know why I can't stand being underground? Your damn Kurotsuchi bastard, that's why."

Yemon felt a tingle of irritation at Tatsuki's choice of words. "He's not _mine,_" he said, slowly but firmly taking Tatsuki's hands off himself, but still sitting on the ground.

Tatsuki continued speaking like she hadn't heard him.

"When Karakura was destroyed, it was like a blight had fallen on the world. The Deadzone. That's what they called it. It expanded slowly, and as it did, it turned everything into a dead nothing. People disappeared if they walked in. The few that survived were eaten by the hollows that lived inside, and they kept pouring in by the hundreds."

"What's that got to do with Kurotsuchi?" Yemon asked, still annoyed.

"He showed up at the time. Saying he could fix it. He build entire cities that were supposed to keep people safe even if the Deadzone passed through them. And I don't know what bizarre fascination the asshole had with nuclear power, but everything he did was. I was there, Yemon. I was there every fucking time. Not a single one of his stupid inventions ever saved anyone. And every time I was the only damn survivor. People turned to dust whenever the Deadzone got us, and every time I walked out of the ghost cities alone."

Suddenly Tatsuki grabbed Yemon by the collar again and pulled him to his feet, only to immediately jump several steps back and ready her guard. Yemon's cheek still burned, and he wasn't feeling particularly happy about how things were going, even if Tatsuki was talking about what had been happening to her. It took him several seconds to figure out why.

_It's not my bloody fault, that's why. And I'm getting tired of it._

He took a deep breath and raised his guard too. He was better at kendo than at unarmed combat, but he knew how to defend himself.

"And what about the underground?" Yemon finally asked.

As if she had been waiting for it, Tatsuki pushed forward, but didn't answer until they exchanged two blocked punches each and Yemon jumped back with Hyrenkyaku to dodge a sweeping spinning kick.

"I stopped running when I found Akiyoshido. I got sick of it. I scavenged to live and made my home inside the caves." She lowered her guard as she talked, and Yemon did the same. "I knew it was all going to hell. But one day... I don't know how many years it had been. One day there was a distant rumble, and saw a mushroom cloud. And then another. And before I knew it, I had run inside the caves, and I thought the heavens had fallen on my head when one of the nukes fell on top and collapsed half of everything and trapped me in!"

She resumed her attack, and Yemon could easily tell she wasn't as focused as she had been before. He deflected two punches and, on the third, sidestepped and pushed forward with half a spin, forcing Tatsuki to spend precious moments regaining her footing when he pushed her aside, and finishing his combo by ducking under her final punch and landing an open palm hit on her stomach.

Tatsuki stumbled back with an arm around her belly, grunting in both pain and annoyance.

"And you survived that," said Yemon.

Tatsuki took a while to start speaking again. "Yes. I was deep in the cave when it hit, it was safe. But I was trapped. My light gave out after a few months, I ran out of food. I don't even know how long I was in the dark like that, long enough that everything was changed when I came out. And the radiation was gone. Mostly. Must've been decades. I hardly ate in those years, sometimes I was lucky and caught some fish, or fuck knows what other times. When I finally found an exit it took me a month before I could walk outside during the day without going blind."

She was breathing heavily when she was done, and Yemon's annoyance was gone too with what he had finally understood of that fight. Tatsuki had been trying to beat the words out of herself, and failing that, had been trying to have him do it instead. But something was missing.

"Something I still don't get. Were you only pissed at your claustrophobia just now?"

"No," she replied, and charged once again, forcing Yemon to dodge her first punch and use Hyrenkyaku to narrowly avoid the kick she had thrown almost immediately to his blind spot. "I've fought this fucking wasteland since that day to survive. Like Orihime asked me to. So why the hell have those asshole super-mutants gotten me twice? This wasn't supposed to happen!"

They exchanged two hit-and-block combos each while Yemon fought to contain a grin.

_Mystery solved._

He didn't say anything else until they stepped away from each other to catch their breaths after a few exchanges. The fight was losing intensity, and Yemon was quite satisfied to see it was turning into a more regular sparring session. Hoping to steer her thoughts away from her frustrations, he decided to ask her about the nukes.

"Wasn't radiation a problem when you came out, Tatsuki?"

"Nah. The only things I had when I came out were my Geiger counter and three bags of RadAway."

"Huh, you carried all that for years?"

"As I told you, your Kurots-"

"He's not mine!" Yemon snapped, interrupting in obvious annoyance.

Tatsuki grinned. "Fine. As I said, that asshole kept putting nuclear powered shit everywhere. Everyone had a Geiger counter back then."

"Huh. Weird."

_So if... Wait a minute, if Kurotsuchi was not actually helping anyone, or is he that useless? Am I really going to get the chip I need from him? Uh... Why am I thinking of nuclear power now? Did he-_

"Yemon!"

Tatsuki had shouted his name from really close, but he didn't quite put together what had happened until his head settled and he realized he was laying on the ground, with Tatsuki kneeling next to him and looking down at him with a worried expression.

He blinked and put a hand to his face. "Ugh... Ouch, that hurts, what happened?"

"What? I was going to ask that! You were looking straight at me, and when I threw a punch, you didn't even move!"

He tried to remember what had happened, but all he could think of was Tatsuki talking about being trapped underground while they sparred.

"Ugh... I can't remember what I was thinking of..."

Yemon tried to stand up, but lost his balance and had to be helped up by Tatsuki.

"Are you okay?" She asked, steadying him.

"Yeah, just lost my balance there. Ugh..."

"Sorry."

"It's okay, we were sparring. I'm just trying to figure out what I was thinking..."

As they started to make their way back, they were interrupted by the growling of Dogmeat, walking towards them at a brisk pace. At that moment, it hit them. Yemon felt his legs almost buckle under him.

Reiatsu. Like nothing he had felt before. It was so intense that for a moment he would have sworn he felt like a blade had pierced through his chest. Tatsuki squeezing the arm he had over her shoulders brought him back to reality, and they both turned in the direction Dogmeat was pointing and growling at.

"Are you finally done?" A masculine, deep and gritty voice boomed.

There was a large man looking down at them from the top of a pile of rubble, and the reiatsu Yemon was feeling coming from him could only be described as _monstrous_. He had long, messy and somewhat spiky dark hair, a narrow bony face with a vertical scar over and under his left eye, and another, much more hideous scar all over his right eye. It looked like someone had put a red hot piece of metal over his eye, leaving only charred skin underneath. He was tall, at least two meters tall, very muscular, and was holding a very long sword, chipped and worn-out looking.

_We're so fucked..._

"Well?" The man insisted.

Yemon felt Tatsuki disengaging from him as she started to walk away, keeping her distance with the man as she circled away.

_I don't think it's going to matter if there's two of us instead of-_

His thoughts were interrupted when, for the briefest of moments, he caught a glimpse of pink hair and a black Shihakushō rushing past him. He heard a feminine voice giggling, and just like that Tatsuki and Dogmeat disappeared in front of his eyes.

He heard Tatsuki's sudden cry of surprise and the barking of Dogmeat far behind him.

"What the-"

"To think you were out here to. It's just you and me now!" The man yelled, in a disturbingly cheery way. "Fight me, Ichigo!"

_Oh shi-_

Tatsuki couldn't quite tell what had happened. Something black and pink had flashed before her eyes and she thought she heard someone giggling, but after that all she got was a painful crash on the ground, a great distance away from Yemon. Dogmeat was barking and growling, and when she looked in his direction, it took her several moments to take in what was happening.

A young woman, dressed as a Shinigami, with pink hair and an armband around her upper left shoulder, was standing a few meters from her, holding Dogmeat up in her arms and, much to Tatsuki's surprise, giggling. She was fairly tall, a bit under six feet perhaps, and had a round, very happy looking face, with big dark pink eyes and light skin, with a blush on her cheeks. A short sheathed blade was hanging from a loose cord from one of her hands, with a dark purple scabbard and a tsuba shaped like a five-petal flower.

_Is that a pair of wheels at the end of the saya?_

"What a cute little doggy!"

Even though Dogmeat was struggling, he wasn't going anywhere, and the pink-haired young woman seemed rather happy at rubbing her face against his fur.

"Let go of him!" Tatsuki shouted, standing up and raising her guard.

"But he's cute!" The girl retorted.

Tatsuki gritted her teeth and charged at the girl. If nothing else, she'd have to let go of Dogmeat if she wanted to defend herself, and Tatsuki was sure she'd be able to grab the initiative.

Instead, she disappeared right before Tatsuki's eyes with the fastest shunpo she had ever seen, or rather, failed to see. She almost lost her balance when she dodged the counter kick that passed a fraction of an inch in front of her face, and never saw coming the second kick that caught her straight on the stomach. It sent her flying several meters, crashing on the ground painfully.

The girl appeared in front of her in a blur of shunpo and put her foot in Tatsuki's stomach, while she contorted on the ground painfully trying to breath. She hadn't let go of Dogmeat.

"Don't be like that," she said in a playful tone. "Just let Ken-chan and Icchi have some fun."

"I... cchi..." Tatsuki struggled to say.

"Yes, he's Ken-chan's buddy! He-"

She stopped talking and turned away when a large crash interrupted her. From her precarious position, Tatsuki managed to see a large cloud of debris, with Yemon rushing out of it with Hyrenkyaku, and the man chasing after him – not bothering to use shunpo, but still keeping up without any outward effort. Even at that distance, the reiatsu felt suffocating, and the maniacal grin on the man's face sent a chill to her heart.

"See? He has that look, he's having fun!"

Tatsuki didn't see anything resembling fun. All she saw was the wolfish grin dripping with bloodlust, and Yemon scrambling for his life.

_He's going to kill him. Ye gods he's going to hill him..._

She reached up and grabbed the girl's clothes, and she reacted without thinking by pushing her foot down on Tatsuki's stomach. She felt the little air that was still in her lungs forced out as she retched, but didn't let go.

"I... chi..."

The girl took her foot from Tatsuki's belly and looked down at her, curious. "Hm?"

"That... not... Ichi... go..."

"Ah? Of course that's Icchi, Ken-chan felt him from miiiiiiles away! He's never wrong about that!"

"Please... He's not... Don't..."

_Don't kill him..._

Yemon emerged from the cloud of debris without even bothering to see where he was running. He was at the verge of exhaustion and all he had managed was to run away from that monster with Hyrenkyaku, only to have him nipping at his heels just by plainly running. Worse still, it looked like he wasn't even going all out to keep up with him.

_What the fuck do I do?_

"Come on! What's wrong with you? Stop running and fight me already! I ain't had a good fight in years!"

The man suddenly appeared in front of Yemon, and as he narrowly dodged the downwards slash of the worn-out blade, he was thrown off by the blast of its crash on the ground and the massive surge of reiatsu. As he tumbled along he thought he saw that the man was simply standing at the spot looking at him.

_It's now or never!_

He managed to regain his footing and at the same instant his reiatsu flared up as he called forth his Quincy bow. Raising it, creating an arrow and firing it at the man was all one fluid motion. His target didn't even move, the arrow flew true and crashed on his chest.

And vanished without a trace.

_Not even a scratch?_

The man's grin disappeared. "What the hell?" He muttered unhappily. "When did you become such a pussy?"

Yemon was nearly thrown down to his feet when the man's reiatsu flared again, and for a moment he thought it had become solid and visible around him, shaped like a giant yellow skull. Yemon couldn't even lift a finger as he walked closer, raising his sword.

_Shit..._

Yemon didn't even have the energy to say something when the blade came down towards his head. There was a huge blast as the sword came down and sliced through everything it encountered, creating a huge scar on the ground as it did.

As the dust settled, Yemon looked down in amazement at the scene. The pink-haired girl was holding him above her head with both hands on his stomach, and was standing on the man's blade, which was embedded into the ground. He took a glimpse back and couldn't believe the amount of destruction that had been unleashed.

But most of all, he couldn't believe he was still alive.

"Yachiru, what the hell?" The man asked, eyeing the pink-haired girl crossly.

"This isn't Icchi, Ken-chan."

"Aaah? You think I can't tell?"

"Blueberry told me," Yachiru offered as an explanation, and looked up at Yemon. "What's your name?"

"I'm... Yemon. Kurosaki Yemon."

Without a word, Yachiru tossed him aside, and grinned at _Ken-chan_. "See?"

"Since when do you care anyway?" The large man asked.

Yachiru mouthed a wordless "oh" as she jumped off the sword, and turned to Yemon. "So where is Icchi?" She asked, grinning.

"Dead," Yemon answered, dusting himself up as he stood painfully. "And I wish people would stop mixing us up dammit..."

"What the hell? He's dead?"

Yemon eyed the man and the girl carefully before answering. "Yes... And you are?"

"Zaraki Kenpachi," he answered with a grin.

"And I'm Yachiru!" The pink-haired girl perked up.

Yemon hadn't even listened to Yachiru, he had his eyes fixed on Kenpachi.

"Zaraki Kenpachi... As in Captain of the 11th, home of every crazy in the Wasteland, that Kenpachi?"

"What?" Kenpachi asked, raising an eyebrow.

"How the hell did you run your division? Every Shinigami from the 11th I've come across has tried to kill me! Well, hardly a surprise now that I see what a lunatic you are!"

Kenpachi looked at Yemon and grinned. "Oooh? And what did you do with them?"

"What? I... I killed..."

Yemon hesitated when he felt a chill run up his spine under the intense gaze of Kenpachi.

_I really don't like that grin..._

Kenpachi tapped his shoulder with the back of his sword as he looked at Yemon. "So you're not useless after all, huh?"

Yemon had never been so grateful for an interruption before. Dogmeat had started barking, and the tension of the moment disappeared as everyone's attention was diverted towards the mutt.

"What the... Tatsuki!"

Dogmeat was alternating between barking at them and sniffing at the apparently unconscious Tatsuki, who was laying on the ground without moving.

For a moment Yemon forgot himself and turned to Yachiru with an angry expression. "What did you do to her?"

"Blueberry just fell asleep, she's fine!" Yachiru answered, smiling widely.

"Blu...? Whatever!"

Yemon rushed to Tatsuki with Hyrenkyaku and quickly knelt besides her, gently pushing Dogmeat away. "Tatsuki? Can you hear me?" He made sure she was breathing, and as she wasn't waking up he turned her on her side, with one arm tucked under her head. He explored her mouth with two fingers when he realized she had been throwing up, but didn't find any obstructions.

_I don't think she got beaten up too badly._

He left her for a moment with Dogmeat while he rushed to collect their belongings, getting back in less than a minute with the few things they travelled with. He made a neat bundle with the blanket to put under her head, and wetted his hand slightly to pass it over her forehead. While he was fussing over Tatsuki, Dogmeat started growling, and Yemon turned to see Yachiru and Kenpachi walking towards them. He furrowed his brow. "What do you-"

"Doggy!" Yachiru suddenly interrupted, with a huge grin. Dogmeat yelped and took off at full speed, and with a giggle Yachiru rushed after him.

"Hey! Don't..." Yemon started to complain, but was completely ignored. He sighed and scratched his head. "What the hell..." He muttered unhappily.

"Oi kid," Kenpachi called, getting Yemon to look at him but not answering. "What happened to Ichigo?"

"I told you, he's dead. Shit, he's been dead for a hundred years, he was my great-granduncle."

"And how did he die?"

Yemon kept his eyes on Kenpachi as he reseated himself into a more comfortable position, cross -legged on the ground next to Tatsuki, while the former Captain sat down on a piece of rubble.

"I don't know _how_ he died. I know he died fighting the traitor, Aizen, but that's about it."

"Hmmm, must've been a hell of a fight."

Yemon looked at Kenpachi with obvious confusion, and reached for his backpack as he spoke. "Weren't you a Captain at the time? Or do I have the wrong Kenpachi?"

He took Urahara's diary out of it and started flipping pages, but Kenpachi didn't seem to have a problem answering question.

"Yeah, but I was stuck in Hueco Mundo. Fucking boring fight there."

Yemon didn't say anything, busy as he was working through the diary, until he was interrupted by Yachiru putting her head over his shoulder, and nearly jolting his heart out of his chest in surprise.

"Gah! Bloody hell! How did you sneak up on me like that?"

"Hmmm," Yachiru mumbled, reading while munching on something. "Whatcha reading?"

"Oh, this is... Wait, what are you eating?"

The smell was unmistakeable, as well as the crunching sound when Yachiru munched. "Oooh, look, that's talking about baldy!" ***Munch***

"Hey those are my cookies!" Yemon protested, seeing both Yachiru and Kenpachi eating them.

Without missing a beat, and still munching, Kenpachi took his sword and pointed it at Yemon.

"We could just kill you and take them, you know..."

He was mercifully distracted from the sword pointed at him when Yachiru reached out to flip to the next page, _oooh-_ing and _aaah_-ing at Urahara's notes on the 11th.

_Well, nuts, these two are fucking crazy._


	14. More Than a Crossroads

"If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape a hundred days of sorrow."

**- Chinese Proverb.**

* * *

><p>"Wait for meeeeeee!"<p>

Yemon threw a side glance at Yachiru as she once again took off after Dogmeat. The mutt yelped once, and Yemon couldn't tell whether he had done so in distress or enjoyment. Probably a bit of both, in the last two days those two had done more miles than most of the wrecked-up cars they had come across during their lifetimes.

"Why are you coming with us?" Yemon had asked Kenpachi back then.

"Well..." He had started to answer with a grin, but Yachiru's giggling as she chased after Dogmeat had been all the answer he had needed. "That's all really."

Yemon had taken a look at Tatsuki and given up. He was getting no support there, and there was the small fact that there was nothing he could really do about it.

_Where does a 500-pound gorilla sleep? Anywhere he wants!_

A curious saying; he had only seen pictures of gorillas, but Kenpachi probably qualified as a 500 _ton_ one, going by "whatever-the-hell-he-wantsness".

At least he still had some cookies left.

He looked at Tatsuki again. She was walking a few steps behind them, staring at the ground, and not saying a word. This time, it hadn't even been an argument. She had been out for several hours when Yachiru had knocked her out, and had freaked out upon waking up and seeing Yachiru and Kenpachi casually sleeping by the dying fire.

It had taken Yemon quite a while to calm her down, although neither Shinigami had looked particularly worried about the homemade railway rifle aimed at them. While the argument that had ensued had not been as heated as the one during their borderline fight-training, the end had been a lot more abrupt than Yemon had expected.

"Yes, _we _could have run away, or at least _you_ could, why didn't you?" Yemon had asked in the heat of the moment.

"What the hell? I should have just left you then?" Tatsuki had replied, just as hotly. "I was trying to help you! But I couldn't do a thing against that... that..." She had been pointing at Yachiru, who hadn't moved a muscle.

"Yes, well, it's harder to help someone than to run away, isn't it?"

Words are a curious thing, once they are out, no amount of wishing in the world is ever able to get them back. Yemon had regretted that reply as soon as it had escaped his mouth, and Tatsuki's response had made it even worse. She had given him the strangest look he had ever seen on someone, and just like that, she had dropped the argument and hadn't said another word.

That had been two days ago. And still all Yemon had managed to coach out of her were a few loose words, and a mumbled "shut up" whenever he tried to bring it up and apologize.

She wasn't even angry. He had seen her brooding with anger, and that wasn't it. She was plodding along behind them, gaze downcast, railway rifle over her shoulder, and not saying a word.

Yemon shook his head and caught a glimpse of Kenpachi as he turned away from Tatsuki. He was walking along without a care in the world, with his sheathed sword resting on his shoulder and a wide, measured step.

He was built like a proverbial brickhouse, but the fact that he walked along with his ragged shirt open didn't make it look like he was flaunting it. He had several scars, but the ones that caught Yemon's attention the most were the patch-like burnt scar over his right eye, and one on his chest that, in Yemon's estimation, was located right over his Soul Sleep.

_Can't be, though, he'd have lost his spiritual power a long time ago if it was. Still, I wonder..._

His musings were interrupted by the familiar laughter of Yachiru and the barking of Dogmeat, which were approaching at incredible speed. Yemon sighed and turned to the racket, getting ready to step between Dogmeat and Yachiru as soon as they appeared.

Again.

As soon as he did, Yachiru came to a skidding halt, while Dogmeat hid between Yemon's legs. "Okay, okay, give the poor mutt a break."

"Bu-uuuuut!" She complained, making a fake pout.

"You can play later," he replied, shielding his eyes with his right hand as he looked around, "you're going give poor Dogmeat a heatstroke at this rate. Let's take a break, shall we?"

"Okaaaay Kurochi." Yachiru replied.

He had asked about the nickname she had given him, but she had only laughed, called him weird, and otherwise completely ignored him.

_Black chi? I don't get it._

A few minutes later they had set camp under a large rocky outcropping, and Yemon couldn't be more grateful for the cool shade to spend the hot part of the day under.

"Tatsuki, can I have the water please?"

She didn't answer, merely unslung the canteen from where she was sitting, but as she winced in pain, Yemon reached out and grabbed it.

"Woah, wait, are you still in pain?"

"I'm fine," she muttered.

Yemon put the canteen down and knelt behind her. "Let me take a look at your back."

"It's fine, leave me alone."

"Tat-" He clamped up and took a deep breath, speaking afterwards in a low, tired voice. "Just let me take a look."

After a few moments, Tatsuki unzipped the top of her patched-up jumpsuit and let Yemon uncover her back. He felt her shudder every time he pressed as he carefully and methodically examined the wound. The skin that had been grafted back looked dark red, with a pink-purplish contour all around, and there were several dark, dried-up spots where he had had to remove some of the dead skin that didn't make it in. It didn't look worse than other days, though he still gave it a thorough examination to look for troublesome spots.

_Mom would know better than me. Well, it's not the easiest thing to take care of while on the road I guess. It's going to leave one ugly scar... She's got a few already._

"It's not looking too bad, does it hurt more than before?"

"It's fine," she muttered again.

"Okay then."

Not ten seconds after sitting down and letting Dogmeat drink as he poured water onto the palm of his hand, Tatsuki sat behind him and did the exact same thing, pulling his Shihakushō down and looking at his back.

"Hey, what...?" Yemon winced slightly as Tatsuki put her hand on his wound, but to his surprise she didn't seem to do much exploration, she only followed the contour of the deathclaw's mark with her fingers. "What's wrong?"

"No... Nothing," she answered, hesitating, "it looks fine."

"Yeah, well, it's just four cuts, those are a lot easier to heal with some stitches..." Yemon babbled on, but Tatsuki didn't say anything, she seemed to be mesmerized by the wound. "Tatsuki?"

"Yemon..."

Silence, only her hand on his back.

"Yes?"

"You never told me how you got this wound."

"Huh, I said it was a deathclaw, remember?"

"But why were you fighting a deathclaw?"

"What's gotten into you?" Yemon dodged, looking over his shoulder at Tatsuki.

"Can't you tell me?" Tatsuki insisted.

Yemon thought about it while feeding Dogmeat some more water, looking at the grey mutt licking his hand as he drank. Finally, with a sigh, he took a sip of water himself and closed the canteen. He didn't consider himself much of a storyteller, so he tried to keep the explanation simple. Tatsuki listened without a word, still with her hand on Yemon's back.

"So that's what happened," Yemon concluded after his explanation, "got Tandi back home, and that was that. You know the rest."

Tatsuki pulled Yemon's Shihakushō up and carefully closed it, passing her hands over his back as she did. "You took a very big risk Yemon."

"Yeah, well, I had to."

"Because of me?"

Yemon took a moment to think before answering. "And the Vault too. I had to-"

"You were right," Tatsuki interrupted.

"Huh? What?"

"You were right. It's harder... It's harder to protect someone..."

"Oh jeez, look, I didn't mean to-"

"No," she interrupted again, "that's what it is. Truth is the truth."

"Tatsuki..."

"It's okay," she tapped Yemon's back gently and stood up, "just have a rest."

"Why..."

Yemon turned to look at Tatsuki, but she was already walking away. She walked past the napping Kenpachi, and knelt down next to Yachiru, who was laying down on the ground and watching clouds pass while kicking with her feet, obviously bored. He couldn't make what the discussion they were having was about, but Yachiru looked like she wouldn't have any of it, until Tatsuki said something while gesturing towards him. Yachiru sat up, looked at him, and after a few moments, nodded.

"Huh. I wonder what they're talking about."

His wonderment didn't have to wait long. They both stood up, walked some distance away into the open, and stood facing each other. When Tatsuki raised her guard, Yemon finally understood.

"Well, spray me with Raid and call me a radroach, that's not a bad- Woah!"

Less than a second after Tatsuki had raised her guard, Yachiru had jumped at her with an insanely fast shunpo and knocked her down with a sweep Tatsuki didn't even see coming. Yemon jumped to his feet without even thinking, but was immediately stopped by Kenpachi's.

"Sit down kid."

It took Yemon a few moments to realize it was Kenpachi's voice. "Weren't you asleep?"

"Yeah." Kenpachi replied without opening his eyes. "Just sit down and let them do their thing, didn't we stop because of you?"

"Uh... But..."

Kenpachi was obviously done talking, because he didn't add another word to interrupt the bumbling Yemon. Tatsuki was already back at it with Yachiru, and as they clashed again, Yemon shook his head and sat down again, laying with his back to the rocky outcrop and reaching out to pat Dogmeat. In the distance, Yachiru's powerful reiatsu was drowning Tatsuki's more subtle one, making it very difficult for him to follow what was happening.

"You know where this is going to end, don't you?" Yemon said, prompting a whine from Dogmeat as an answer.

Two hours later they had resumed their march towards the Hub, after a good hour of training and another hour of Tatsuki recovering while Yemon went over her scuffs and bruises.

And yet, despite that, she seemed strangely satisfied.

"Feeling better?" Yemon asked as they plodded along.

Tatsuki looked at Yemon and grinned. "Oh yeah, she's a lot better than you, you know... Kurochi."

"You too?" He said, shaking his head and smiling.

"It could be worse you know."

"Yeah, I know, she could call me muppet too."

"No, I mean, she calls me Blueberry..." Her voice trailed off before changing subjects. "Wait, was that bothering you?"

Yemon looked at Tatsuki and shrugged. "A little, but it's all water under the vault now."

"Huh... I suppose... What the hell is that?"

As they talked, they had made their way to the edge of a deep, long gorge cutting their advance completely. Kenpachi was standing at the edge, looking ahead with complete calm, while Yachiru was dragging dogmeat behind her Dogmeat towards it, and the mutt was biting the ankle of her Shihakushō and whining as he tried to hold her back.

Once she got to the edge of the cliff, she opened her mouth widely in a big smile. "Wooooow, it's so huge! Look Dogmeat!"

Giving up, Dogmeat let go of her and took off before Yachiru could grab him, running behind Yemon and chomping at his leg too to stop him from getting anywhere near the cliff.

"What is it boy?" Yemon asked, stopping his walk and freeing his leg by scratching the dog behind the ears. "Afraid of heights?"

Dogmeat whined in response, lowering his ears and licking Yemon's hand.

Tatsuki made a small grimace. "Yemon, don't you think there's something weird about this dog?"

"What do you mean?"

Yemon looked at her, and so did Dogmeat, and for a moment Tatsuki thought they had the same inquisitive look on their respective faces. "Look at him! When was the last time you saw a dog that smart? He looks like he can understand what we say!"

Yemon and Dogmeat looked at each other for a few moments, in such perfect sync that Tatsuki felt a chill run up her spine, until Yemon shrugged, prompting Dogmeat to wag his tail.

"More importantly, where the hell are we?" Yemon started poking the Pip-boy, and after a few seconds his eyes opened wide in surprise. "What the hell?"

"What?" Tatsuki asked, surprised.

"What what? Take a look!"

He extended his arm to offer a view of the Pip-boy to Tatsuki, and when she looked at it, she couldn't make heads nor tails of what she saw.

"What am I looking at?"

"A map of our route."

"It's just one big squiggle..." She said, and suddenly understanding dawned on her. "Oh."

Yachiru rushed to their side and appeared in a blur of shunpo."Hey, hey! Whatcha looking at?"

"Yachiru, what the hell?" Yemon said, showing her the Pip-boy. "I thought you said you knew the way to the Hub!"

"Of course I do!" She replied, smiling, and pointed at a random direction. "It's that way!"

"That's North." Yemon replied in a flat voice.

"So, we're lost?" Tatsuki asked, looking at Kenpachi make his way back to the rest of the group.

"Well, not exactly. If the Hub really is somewhere around here..." Yemon pointed at a marker on the Pip-boy's map, "… then we just have to make our way there. But seriously Yachiru, we've wasted three days and-"

"Let's go!" She interrupted him, chasing after the yelping Dogmeat in the wrong direction.

"Hey, Yachiru! That's not the way!" Yemon shouted, to no avail as the pink-haired Shinigami ignored him completely.

It had been ten days after finding the gorge, and more than two weeks in total, when they finally made it to the Hub, for a trip that should have taken five days at worst and during which Yemon's patience had been put thoroughly to the test. The deadline Karin had given him was an estimate at best, and maybe even an optimistic one, and he didn't want to think what would happen if he missed it and they were forced to open the vault.

But no matter how much he didn't want to think about it, it was all he could think of. He'd have to get rid of those two, but there was no way for him to do it. Kenpachi ignored him, Yachiru only wanted to play with Dogmeat, and they both had terrible sense of direction.

One thing was for sure though. Travelling with those two made every trip three times longer than it should, but damn if it wasn't the safest way to travel the Wasteland.

_Who on earth would get close to that maniac? Everything we've come across has just run away!_

Tatsuki looked at Yemon work his brain and decided to interrupt his train of thought. For her it had been a lot of intense training, and beaten up as she was, she was feeling like she hadn't in a long time. But Yemon had been rather on edge. "What's wrong this time Yemon? Stop working yourself into knots."

"Two weeks to find this stupid place."

"Yes, I know." She sighed, and didn't add what she was thinking. _You've been yammering about it all week. _"We _don't_ have to travel with them, you know."

"Yes, it's my fault, isn't it? I should-"

"Yemon!" Tatsuki interrupted him. "We're here already, okay? Just give it a rest for now."

As they approached the settlement, Yemon realized it was a lot bigger than any he had seen so far, looking just as run-down as everything else, but teeming with people all over. Before they got anywhere near, a group of what appeared to be Shinigami had gathered and was watching their approach.

"Hmmm, how interesting," Kenpachi muttered, grinning intensely.

Yemon looked at him and spoke in an irritated voice. "Are you going to pick up a fight even before we get there?"

"That'll be up to them," Kenpachi replied, intensifying his grin.

"Oh for f-" He stopped talking when he noticed Yachiru and Dogmeat rushing towards the group. "Dogmeat! Come here!"

The dog obeyed, and for a moment Yachiru seemed unsure as to whether to chase him back or not. In the meantime, the grey mutt gave a friendly whine to Yemon, who ignored him as he continued his walk towards the Hub.

"There, there boy," Tatsuki consoled him, giving him a quick scratch on his back, "you're annoying the scary man," she concluded with a grin.

Yemon noticed that the group and Kenpachi were eyeing each other without disguising their intentions one bit. Kenpachi looked ready to start a fight as soon as a suitable excuse and appropriate opposition were found, and the other Shinigami were likely crapping their pants at the strength of the reiatsu emanating from the former Captain. Kenpachi stopped just beyond striking distance,

"This a welcome party?" Said Kenpachi.

A tall, black-haired Shinigami with a square jaw and a rough armband around his left shoulder took a step forward, thus identifying himself as the leader of the group. "That depends, what business do you have in the Hub?"

"We're not here to cause any trouble.." Yemon replied, but Kenpachi interrupted.

"Speak for yourself." Said he.

"Why yes, I _am _speaking for myself Kenpachi." Yemon retorted. "Why-"

"Kenpachi?" Another, older Shinigami interrupted. "My word, Zaraki Kenpachi!"

All eyes turned to the voice, a scraggy looking Shinigami with grey hair and a worn-down face. The look of surprise would have been almost comical in different circumstances.

"You know this lot Taizo?"

"Uh, sir, that's Zaraki Kenpachi, captain of the 11th Division."

The words had an immediate effect on most of the younger Shinigami, causing quite a stir as they reached for their weapons as if they were expecting to be attacked in that very second, but the older Shinigami merely stepped in front and made a small bow to Kenpachi.

"Don't worry about the kids, sir, they haven't seen much of the 11th other than raiders. Welcome to the Hub. What brings you to these parts?"

"Hey, Taizo, what-"

A stony gaze from the older Shinigami quickly silenced the armbanded leader, much to Kenpachi's obvious amusement. "Just passing by," he said, still grinning.

"And looking for a fight perhaps?"

"If there is one..." His grin intensified.

"I'm afraid you won't find much worth your time in here, sir. Bunch of wusses from the 8th is all we've got."

There were some murmurs of dissent, but a quick measuring glance from Kenpachi easily silenced them all.

"Tsch, what a shame," said Kenpachi, losing his grin. "Anything worth seeing in this place then?"

"Not sure what you're looking for, sir. We have a pretty good library from the old days, but it's probably not your thing. Most of the trade caravans have an office here, so if it's trade you want, we have plenty of it, and the Maltese Falcon is good for booze and music, and has a casino too."

"Casino?" Tatsuki perked up.

A spit second later, Yemon had caught her hand as it went into the proverbial cookie jar, or rather, his bag of caps.

"Hey, I won those caps!" Tatsuki protested.

"You're gonna get us in trouble again!" Yemon retorted.

"What? You still pissed about that? They were the ones who were cheating!"

"Excuse me!" The old man interrupted, and Yemon and Tatsuki turned to him in perfect unison. "There will be no trouble of any kind in this town. If you have a problem, we'll be the ones to solve it, we're the law here, is that clear?"

He gave Kenpachi a sideglance as he said that, but without giving a chance for the others to reply, he turned around and led the Shinigami back into town, leaving Tatsuki and Yemon somewhat confused, while Kenpachi merely shrugged and started to walk off, with Yachiru perched on his shoulder, while Dogmeat followed them, but not without first looking back at Yemon and giving a small whimper, wagging his tail.

Even though the young woman was just shy of six feet in height, she still looked like a small accessory on Kenpachi's shoulder. The whole scene was more than a bit strange, or so Yemon thought.

Tatsuki gave a tentative tug at the bag. "Come on Yemon, we're finally here, okay? Let's just look at what they have, maybe that library he mentioned will have something."

I sure hope so," he sighed, and pulled at the bag of caps himself, "but you're not spending all the caps in the casino."

"Wasn't my intention," she grinned, letting go of it.

Yemon had gotten used to the shabby constructions that littered the wasteland, and in that respect the Hub didn't disappoint. The run-down dwellings had been laid down along what appeared to be an old piece of highway, a large crossing of black tarmac that served as the hub for the trade caravans that launched from the site. A number of people were milling about loading goods and crates on broken vehicles and brahmin, and the latter seemed to be more zealously guarded than the former.

Truth to be told, Yemon couldn't tell the difference between random trash and the goods that were going to be traded. They made their way to the center of town under the intense scrutiny of pretty much everyone they came across, and that's when they spotted the sign on one of the few concrete buildings that pointed at the Maltese Falcon.

"Here we are," Yemon said, in a whoop-dee-doo tone.

"Why don't you come with me?" Tatsuki asked as she dug inside the caps bag. "Let me buy you a drink or two," she grinned.

"The last thing I need is-"

"Psst!" Someone interrupted them.

Yemon and Tatsuki turned to see a shifty looking character, rather dirty even for wasteland standards, and looking ragged and run-down.

Neither Tatsuki nor Yemon said a word, so he continued talking. "You new to town? Yes?" No answer, but he didn't look like he needed one. "Well, guess you're in luck, if you're looking for something good, your old friend Lemmy knows where to get it. Jet, Med-X, d-"

He stopped talking as soon as the edge of a blade landed right on his neck, biting into his skin as Yemon pressed it menacingly.

"You little piece of shit, you get near her again and I'll-"

Tatsuki reached out and grabbed his arm, pulling the blade away from Lemmy's neck. He had unsheathed so fast she hadn't even seen him do it. "Yemon! Stop it!"

As soon as she had pulled the blade away, Lemmy took a step back and fell on his butt, putting a hand on his neck and looking at Yemon with a mix of surprise and anger.

"What the hell ya crazy! Whatya think you're doing!"

There was a noticeable crashing sensation as Yemon's reiatsu spiked, sending blue flares shooting out of his Quincy symbol. Lemmy squeaked and, scrambling on all fours to stand up and run, legged it down the street while yelling: "I have friends! You'll regret this!"

Even after Lemmy had disappeared, Yemon didn't seem to relax one bit, until Tatsuki practically forced him to let go of his knife.

"What the hell was that all about?" She asked, confused.

Yemon gave her a look before answering. "You really need to ask?"

"Oh come on, give me a break Yemon," she replied, shaking her head. "You still think you don't need to come with me and relax?"

Without saying a word, Yemon reached for the caps bag and, putting his hand inside, pulled out a hand full of them. He barely gave Tatsuki enough time to grab them before he disappeared. "I'll see you later," he had said before rushing away with Hyrenkyaku.

Tatsuki sighed. "Yemon, you really are one stubborn... Wait, where is Dogmeat?" She looked around, but couldn't spot the mutt, or the newest additions to their travelling party. "Stupid mutt, now I look like I'm crazy talking to myself."

She passed a hand over her hair, and sighed. She still tried to touch those hairclips every time she worried about something. She looked at her handful of caps, smiled and, putting her railway rifle over her shoulder, strolled into the Maltese Falcon with a confident step.

Having some time to himself, Yemon at first stewed his irritation as he visited the different caravan companies, but after a while he instead started to transfer his irritation to himself, and how stupidly he was acting.

_I've got to apologize to Tatsuki later. But seriously, she hears about a casino and she's off like-_

"What are you doing?"

"Wah!" Yemon practically jumped out of his waraji when his thoughts were so suddenly interrupted. Next to him, and giggling with obvious delight at her sneakiness, was Yachiru. "Bloody hell, don't sneak up on me like that!"

"Tee-hee, you're so funny!"

"Phew. Seriously."

"Whatcha doing?" She tried again.

"Uh, I was just visiting the traders here..." Yemon answered evasively.

"Ooooh, I wanna go shopping too! Can I? Can I?"

"Uh... I suppose, why do you need my-" Even before Yemon had finished, Yachiru disappeared in front of his eyes in a blur of shunpo. "- permission?" He tapped his obi and realized his bag of caps was gone.

Again.

"Oh bloody hell, not again." He looked around and, not seeing the pink-haired crazy, he closed his eyes and tried to sense her reiatsu.

Nothing. He spotted Tatsuki, who appeared to be rather excited (_don't get into trouble yet_), Kenpachi, who was just sitting somewhere in the middle of town and drowning almost every other reiatsu he could feel, and for the life of him he couldn't find Yachiru.

"She's got massive reiatsu, how the hell can she hide it so well?" He shook his head and looked back. "Well, at least I'm done with the caravans. Next there's that shop, what was it, Jake's Weapons. Not that I can buy anything though, where the hell is she?"

As he walked to the east part of town, he tried to keep an eye out for Yachiru, but didn't quite find her anywhere. That part of the Hub was looking specially dirty and run-down, and he had only seen one of the Shinigami patrolling around. Not just dirty, but scrawny, dirty people he could guess were probably drug addicts.

_I guess they Shinigami would rather keep an eye on the caravans than clear this place out._

"There, Vance, that's him!"

Yemon recognized the voice. He turned around and saw Lemmy pointing at him, and next to him three tuggish-looking men. One of them, Vance he guessed, had a pistol holstered at his waist, and the other two were wearing spiked metal armor and wielding large mallets with worrying ease.

"You again?" Yemon asked, with more sharpness in his voice than prudence dictated. "What do _you_ want?"

"What do I want? What? Look at this!" He ointed at his neck, where a hairline of dark, dried-up blood could almost be seen under all the grime. "You made your last mistake pal! We-"

"Shut up Lemmy!" Vance shouted, clamming him up immediately. He turned to Yemon, grinning wickedly. "Not that I give a shit about this loser," he added, pointing at Lemmy with his thumb but not taking his eyes off Yemon, "but seems to me you're bad for business. Can't have you just going around messing our pushers, can we?"

Yemon shot a covert glance around. It didn't seem to him that they needed to do much pushing to sell their wares. "You sure you want to start some crap here?" He pointed over his shoulder in the general direction of the center of town. "Last I heard the Shinigami won't be too happy if you do."

Vance grinned, showing his dirty and rather less than perfect collection of teeth. "This is our town kid, Shinigami come looking for somethin', nobody sees nothing."

Yemon furrowed his brow as Vance made a gesture with his head, prompting the two thugs to start approaching him. For a moment he relished the prospect of giving some scumbags a hell of a beatdown, but quickly realized what he was thinking and put the brakes on it. "You _really _don't want to do this, Vance."

"Aren't we confident," he said, not without irony in his voice, and as his thugs looked back at him, he made a gesture with his head towards Yemon.

Without hesitation, Yemon jumped forward with Hyrenkyaku and, unsheathing as he did, made s vertical swipe at Vance. To his infinite surprise, Vance dodged easily, and as he did, he drew his gun and had it aimed at Yemon even before he landed. He covered awkwardly as he jumped back with Hyrenkyaku, hoping the wide blade would protect him from errand bullets, and as Vance unloaded, he made jump after jump until he crashed through a flimsy and almost ruined roof.

Yemon coughed and spluttered as he dug himself out of the pile of rubble he had just created. A few moments later a shrill voice pierced the air.

"Shinigami! Help! Watch out!"

At the same time, he became aware of the shouts of surprise around him, and moments later, the sounds of guns being primed and cocked. In the hyper-awareness of battle, for a second, he saw several people in the room training guns towards him, and a shinigami locked in a small cell in the back of the room.

_Well, shit!_

Like a flash, Yemon disappeared as soon as bullets started flying and, letting go of his oversized knife, he brought out his Quincy bow and fired a volley of arrows almost without thinking, or even aiming. The arrows crashed through the ceiling, making a massive mess out of the building. A few steps later he appeared next to his dropped knife, and as he did, so did Vance.

For a moment their eyes locked onto each other, and Yemon had the distinct impression that Vance was enjoying the fight much more than he was. Trying for a surprise move, Yemon jumped backwards with Hyrenkyaku while grabbing the end of the loose cord around the tang of his knife, and the resulting wild slash almost caught his opponent by surprise. The very tip of the knife nicked Vance as Yemon rushed back, but he was already thinking of the opponents behind him. He landed ducking under the slow, heavy swing from one of Vance's thugs and as he gripped his knife again, he made a spinning slash that severed the thug in half, cutting under the metallic armor with an ugly, wet crunching sound and sending blood flying all over as he did. The spray of blood splashed over Yemon's face, but he didn't even take the time to wipe it off, pulling away from a second attack from the other thug as he too tried to maul him.

It turned out to be a lucky move, when moments later a hail of bullets started trailing his moves, downing his opponent and forcing him to keep running with Hyrenkyaku. Even when moving as fast as he could, it seemed to him that the bullets were landing dangerously close. He dove behind one of the ruined concrete walls, and hadn't finished propping himself against it when he felt a sudden reiatsu overhead. He reacted more by instinct than conscious thought, and barely managed to block Vance's vicious slash.

"You're not bad kid," he said, grinning.

Yemon didn't have time to even think of an answer. Vance suddenly Stopped pressing his blade against Yemon's and, as the latter lost his balance, he kicked him on the stomach, sending him flying back and crashing through the wall. Even as he did, he had to pull back and away from Yemon to dodge a glowing blue Quincy arrow the vault dweller had managed to fire his way.

He skid to a stop as he landed, clutching his stomach and trying to recover his breath. With a clang, his knife landed about a meter away from him.

_Bloody hell that fucking hurt!_

He felt some movement behind him, saw Vance rushing out from behind the rubble he had just been thrown through, and for a moment hesitated, him together with his legs, which refused to move without the aid of the wind that had been knocked out of his lungs.

_Shit, get up you moron! Up!_

Everything came to a grinding halt as a massive, crushing reiatsu fell across the battlefield. For a moment, Yemon felt as if he had been stabbed through the chest, and it took him several heartbeats to realize he had simply felt an extremely sharp murderous intent falling on him.

"What the hell," a familiar, deep voice woke him up from his reverie, "you _can_ fight when you have to. That your Zanpakutō? What was that sissy bow you used last time?"

_Oh shit!_ Yemon thought, gulping with difficulty. He cast a glance around and realized all the enemies he had been fighting were on the ground, feeling just as crushed by Kenpachi's reiatsu as he was. _Well, I can move at least._

"Well?" Kenpachi insisted.

"Kenpachi... Are you nuts? Look, I'm a Quincy, that sissy bow is all I have... Ugh, can you stop with-"

"Stop them!"

The new familiar voice caught Yemon's attention, but he didn't take his eyes off Kenpachi until he had turned away, and by the by his massive reiatsu receded, as the town's Shinigami came and started restrainng all the combatants. The older Shinigami they had met when they first arrived was walking towards them, and looking none-too-happy to boot.

"Well that sure didn't take long!" He protested, looking at Kenpachi, who merely shrugged. The Shinigami looked around, paying special attention to the body of the thug Yemon had cut in half, and to the bloodied knife on the ground.

Not that the blood splattered over Yemon wasn't enough of a clue.

"Well kid, told ya no killing in this town."

"So what," Yemon retorted hotly, "am I supposed to let them kill me?"

"We'll clear that up at the station. You're coming with me."

At that moment, Yemon forgot everything, including the pain, and stood up like a shot, calling his Quincy bow in the blink of an eye.

"Like hell I am!" He barked.

"Ya making this a lot harder on yourself kid," Kenpachi said.

"What the hell, you're the last person... who..."

Yemon's words faltered as a sudden rain of purple cherry blossom petals started to fall around him, and the last thing he heard was the older Shinigami muttering "Hakufuku."

_Bugger..._

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>The Hub is a huge nexus of quests and stuff in the original Fallout, including the Caravans, so it had to be here too. The caravans are very curious, you can get work with them that takes weeks of travel, but doesn't add to the overall time limit of the main quest. Very confusing.

Blackout1170: Slight spoiler? He serves the same purpose as the prisoner found in Fallout (adding a marker to the map), and when I tried to use him again... Yachiru got in the way :D


	15. I Will Always Remember You

"If the people we love are stolen from us, the way to have them live on is to never stop loving them. Buildings burn, people die, but real love is forever."

**- Sarah, **_The Crow_**.**

* * *

><p>Yemon's thoughts took a while to fall in place as he struggled to wake up. He couldn't tell up from down, or left from right, all he could feel clearly was something scratching his head. He tried to shake it off with his hand, but it kept happening again and again.<p>

"You awake yet?"

The voice was familiar, and so was the soft whine coming from... _whatever_ was messing with his hair. He opened his eyes and looked around, until his vision set on the familiar figure. After a few seconds the double image started to collapse, and his mind cleared some.

"Ugh... Tatsuki."

She was grinning. "Good morning."

Yemon reached up, and touched the familiar muzzle of Dogmeat, who licked his hand once and panted happily.

He sat up holding a hand to his face. "What happened? Ugh... Where am I?"

Tatsuki didn't answer, she merely kept grinning and waited Yemon out. He soon realized that he was inside a small, bare room, and Tatsuki was standing on the opposite side of a set of bars, with Dogmeat having put his head between them to reach inside.

"Oh... Right..." Yemon muttered as the memories came back. He patted himself distractedly, but couldn't find any of his belongings, only the Pip-boy was still on his wrist. Not even his Quincy chain.

"Your stuff is all there," Tatsuki said, pointing vaguely in the direction of the corridor with her thumb. "Are you feeling okay? You look a bit dazed."

"Ugh... Yeah, I'm fine," he rubbed his face as he talked, "you getting me out?"

"Nope."

Yemon looked up in a snap when he head it, and locked gazes with the smiling Tatsuki. "What?"

"I think a night here will do you good."

"What the hell? Tatsuki! I can't waste another day here!" He shouted, jumping up to his feet and forward towards the bars. His sudden movement sent the world spinning around him, and he would have crashed down if Tatsuki hadn't reached through the bars to grab him by the clothes as he stumbled.

She pulled him towards herself, and held him with her arm around his waist, with his back to the bar.

"Yemon," she spoke softly, "calm down."

"Calm down? You're leaving me locked up here! I can't stay in here!"

"You think I'd do that?" She answered, still in a low voice, and pressed her arm around Yemon's waist a bit tighter. "Take a deep breath and calm down."

"Tats-"

"Deep breath," she demanded, interrupting him.

Yemon made an irritated smack with his tongue, but obliged. For a few moments, Tatsuki didn't say anything, and neither did Yemon. She was the one to finally break the silence.

"Better?"

"Tatsuki..."

"Do you really think I'd leave you here?" She asked, and after fruitlessly waiting for an answer, she continued. "I know you're worried about the vault, but you're not helping them like this."

Yemon sighed.

She let go of Yemon, and crossed her arms, smiling at him when he turned around. "The reason I'm not getting you out right now is that they won't let me post bail, okay?"

"So..."

"So, just relax tonight, and tomorrow I'll get you out. _Somehow_."

Yemon closed his eyes and faced up as he sighed. Feeling trapped in there was the last thing he thought he needed, but Tatsuki's demeanour had thrown him off quite a bit.

_Why is she enjoying this like that?_

His mental wandering stopped when Tatsuki put a hand on his chest.

"Yemon... Don't just bottle up when things don't go your way. Trust me."

Before Yemon could reply, they were interrupted by a clanking noise coming from somewhere behind him, and seconds later, one of the tiles from the floor was lifted, or rather, ripped off and sent flying. After the crashing noise died out, Yachiru poked her head up through the hole on the ground, and smiled, waving at them.

"Kurochi! Blueberry! Here you are!" She said, jumping out of the hole.

"Ya... Yachiru!" Yemon finally replied, shocked. "What the hell? What are you doing? Uh... What's that?" He finished, pointing at the bag she was carrying on her back.

"Come with me! I wanna show you something!" Yachiru replied, ignoring Yemon's question.

"Yemon, wait!" Tatsuki called. "We don't have to break you out!"

A slam and the sound of footsteps warned them of what was coming. Yemon saw Tatsuki turning towards the end of the corridor, change her expression to one of shock, and take two steps back.

"What the hell is going on here?"

_Shit. _Yemon cursed mentally.

Shinigami rushed in. Powerless, Yemon had to watch Tatsuki defend herself in desperation against the incoming onslaught. The first one to reach her ended up with a broken jaw, as she made a quick counter to his clumsy attempt at grabbing her with a half-spinning kick. The second one reached for his Zanpakutō as soon as he saw the first one fall, but got instead a very angry Dogmeat attached to his arm. But more were following, and they were coming weapons drawn.

Everything slowed down around him as he watched the fight, wishing fruitlessly for a way to stop it or help. Then, even as he watched, he felt a spike of reiatsu behind him, and an instant later the bars of his cell had been snapped and bent out of shape to create an opening, and every single Shinigami seemed to get multiple hits from something too fast to follow.

When his adrenalin spike crashed, Yemon saw with incredulity the scene of Yachiru standing in the middle of the pile of falling, unconscious Shinigami, and Tatsuki looking like she couldn't quite believe what had happened.

A bark from Dogmeat broke the spell.

"Tatsuki! Are you okay?" Yemon called.

"Y-Yes, I'm fine..." She replied, not taking her eyes off the pink-haired young woman.

"Can we go now?" Yachiru perked up, like nothing had happened.

"Uh... I guess we should..." Yemon hesitated.

"Yahoo!" Yachiru shouted, grabbing Dogmeat and jumping down the hole with extreme enthusiasm.

They took only enough time to gather their belongings from the Sheriff's office and made it down the tunnel Yachiru had used to get in. To his surprise, Yemon realized it was not something she had dug. They climbed down the shaft and ended up in a man-made corridor at least ten meters underground. The walls were lined with concrete and steel beams, and the construction looked extremely sturdy.

"You okay Tatsuki?" Said Yemon.

"Y-Yes... It's okay," she replied, looking nervously at the corridor, "it's fine, let's just get out."

"Right you are. Yachiru, what's this?"

"What is it Kurochi?"

"What's this place?"

"Secret passages! Aren't they great? We can go everywhere with them! We..."

She suddenly quieted down and appeared to be distracted, tilting her head to the side like a bird hearing a song. After a few seconds she opened up in a huge smile, squeaked once, turned around, and ran down the corridor at full speed.

"What the... Yachiru!" Yemon called, getting no answer.

"Chase after her?" Tatsuki asked.

"I guess so..." Yemon answered, clearly annoyed.

"What is it?"

"Why the hell did we come all the way out here if we're just going to have to run away?"

"We'll figure it out later, Yemon, let's just get out. Don't worry, there's more than one way to skin a cat."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Bribe the Shinigami guards, sneak in, have someone else check for the info you want, really don't worry."

Yemon looked at Tatsuki with his doubts clearly drawn on his face. A few moments later, the whole corridor shook around them, followed almost immediately by a thunderous crashing sound.

And after that, Yachiru's laughter.

"Oh bloody hell, let's go stop her before she does something stupid!" Yemon said, taking off with Dogmeat hot on his heels.

"Too late!" Tatsuki replied, following nonetheless.

They came upon a solid metal door to the corridor that had been completely blown off its hinges, and inside was another narrow corridor, with a second door looking equally worse for wear. Yemon nearly stumbled once they reached inside and realized where they were.

"This is a goddamn vault!" He cried out.

He looked around, and back at Tatsuki, who was entering the narrow corridor and lower-ceiling vault with a much more hesitant step.

"Tatsuki, it's a vault!"

"I heard you the first time," she muttered. Dogmeat walked next to her, and rubbed his muzzle against her leg with a small whine. "I'm fine you silly mutt."

They followed the noises of battle, coming upon several unconscious Shinigami, and with Yemon pushing ahead with renewed enthusiasm, trying to stop Yachiru from doing...

_I really don't have a clue why she's doing this, but this is a vault! I can't let her mess this up!_

Tatsuki was still running behind him, concentrating hard only on following Yemon, and not on the oppressively low ceiling or the ominously narrow corridors. What she could see beyond them was simply the meters and meters of ground above.

They caught up with Yachiru when she skidded to a stop in front of a closed door, where several Shinigami had gathered up, shoulder to shoulder and swords at the ready, pointing them at her on the spot they had decided to make a last stand.

"Stop right there!"

Above the door, there was a sign Yemon knew well.

_OVERSEER_

"Yachiru! What the hell are you doing?" Yemon called, rushing to her side.

"Kurochi! It's so great! Nana's here!"

"Nana?" Yemon asked.

There was a crashing sound and a rapid pitter-patter of footsteps coming from the Overseer room, and a moment later the door slid open. A woman wearing a Shinigami Shihakushō stood at the doorframe. She was perhaps around five feet four, with long black hair sporting a few white streaks here and there, pinned at the back of her head and with flat bangs hanging on the right side of her face. She had blue eyes hiding behind oval glasses, a narrow face with a slightly pointy chin, and a few wrinkles at the corners of her eyes and mouth, which hinted at the age the deep look behind her eyes betrayed.

And she looked absolutely stunned.

"Nana!" Yachiru shouted.

All the Shinigami looked back at the woman, who was moving her mouth without speaking. After a few slow moments, her expression of shock changed to a big smile, and she pushed past all the men, rushing towards the pink-haired girl.

"Yachiru!"

The scene as they embraced each other would have been much more touching if it hadn't been so confusing for everyone else. In the uncomfortable silence that followed, Yemon and Tatsuki took a chance to do a quick survey of their potential opposition, and realized the Shinigami were doing the same.

"I can't believe you're still alive!" The woman said, finally pulling away and looking at Yachiru up and down. "When did you get so tall? How did you find me? Why-"

"Lieutenant!"

She turned around and looked at the rest of the Shinigami, including the one who had called her. They were looking very surprised, and more than a mite angry too.

"What is it? Why are you all here?" She asked.

"Why... She broke in here and has been fighting us!"

"Really?" She replied, turning to Yachiru and smiling.

"I was in a hurry! And they kept getting in the way!" Yachiru said, smiling so widely her eyes squinted shut.

"Well, there you have it," the woman replied, turning to the Shinigami, "go clean up, it's all fine here."

Several of the Shinigami looked like they were about to protest, but a slight change of expression from the woman quickly silenced them. There were murmurs and venomous glances, but they obeyed.

"And these are your friends?"

"Yup!" Said Yachiru. "That's Kurochi, and that's Blueberry!"

"I see. I'm Ise Nanao," the woman introduced herself, bowing politely, "Lieutenant of the 8th Division of the Gotei 13."

"Oh, hi. Kurosaki Yemon, this is Arisawa Tatsuki, and that's Dogmeat," Yemon replied as they walked closer, having given the rest of the Shinigami the wide berth.

"Kurosaki..." Nanao muttered, looking at Yemon up and down.

Tatsuki wasn't paying attention. She had stolen a glance towards the Overseer's room, and saw there was a person inside. She looked so much like Nanao that she couldn't help staring. She was sitting at the back of the room, next to a small table showing the remains of a recent meal and with a low stool next to her. She was covered with a pink flowered garment, worn as a blanket but which may have been a kimono a long time ago, frayed and looking as if it had been mended over and over to keep it way past its intended lifespan. She had long black hair, covering the right half of her face and with a few small braids along it, oval glasses, much like the ones Nanao was wearing, and a heart-shaped face with a sharp chin. She was sitting with her head crooked to the right and her gaze fixed and lost in the distance. Her mouth was half-open too, and she didn't as much as move a muscle.

From the distance they were, Tatsuki thought she saw the half of her face that was covered by the hair looked like it was scarred, and she realized that the pink blanket was too short to cover her completely, yet she couldn't see her legs.

_Is she crippled?_

***SMACK***

A sharp smack to the back of her head interrupted her examination, and she turned very angrily.

"Oi Yemon! What's the big... idea..." Tatsuki's voice faltered when she realized Nanao was giving her an absolutely glacial stare. She felt her cheeks burning in shame and averted her gaze as she mumbled "sorry."

"Let's go upstairs and talk, I'll be right back."

Nanao went back into the Overseer office, walked towards the woman and, after fussing over her for a bit, making sure she was comfortable, all the while talking with her in a soft, pleasant voice, she caressed her hair and walked out of the room, stopping to put some music on with a very old-looking gramophone. Yemon only looked tangentially at what was going on, whereas Tatsuki refused to even look up.

_Stupid Yemon!_

They walked to an elevator, and Tatsuki couldn't help but grab onto Yemon during the upwards ride, keeping her eyes closed and holding very tightly. At the top level, Nanao led them through a long corridor, until they came upon a security door. She punched in a few numbers, and it opened with a smooth, noiseless slide. On the other side was an imposing room, long enough that Yemon couldn't make the opposite end in the dim light, and tall enough that the ceiling was clearly above ground, with large windows filtering the insufficient late evening light. Along it, countless shelves, stacked several meters high, stacked with all sorts of books, parchments, and even electronic pieces, created an imposing, almost religious atmosphere.

"Waaaah! This is huge!" Yachiru cried out, taking off like a shot and trying to look at every single thing in the room at once.

"Tatsuki, look up," said Yemon.

She opened her eyes and did so, and a moment later her grip on Yemon had relaxed as she sighed in relief.

"Better?" He asked, smiling.

"Much better," she replied, looking back at the corridor and the Vault, and suppressing a shudder.

"This wasn't part of the original Vault, was it?" Yemon inquired.

Nanao looked at Yemon, then cast her gaze along the room and smiled. "It used to be much smaller, we expanded it when it became safe to open up to the outside again. Here we collect all lost knowledge we can find in the Wasteland."

The pride in her voice matched the way her eyes explored every shelf, every stack of books, every detail in the massive room. She resumed her walk inside, with secure, strong steps that betrayed a sense of ownership. This place was holding a bit of her soul, and a bit of her heart.

"It's a magnificent work," Yemon commented, following Nanao and examining the shelves as they walked along. "Our vault really can't compare with all this."

Nanao's smile widened, a knowing smile mixed with satisfaction. "Your vault, huh? Well, perhaps it will be useful to you?"

Yemon couldn't help laughing. "Yes! I hope so, at least. That's why I'm out here for."

"Indeed. Tell me all about it please."

She gestured to a side, and led them to a commanding area to the side, a raised platform with a large desk in the middle and several chairs around it. She sat down in an almost nesting fashion, with an inviting gesture for the others to do so too.

"Madam President!" She called out loud. "It's tea time!"

"Uh... Madam president?" Yemon asked, puzzled.

Yachiru answered his question by appearing in a blur of shunpo, with a huge smile on her face. "Yay! What are we having?"

"We'll see, they'll bring the tea soon enough," Nanao replied, turning to Yemon. "Yachiru used to be the president of our Shinigami Women's Association," she explained, smiling one last time towards Yachiru, and then looking at Yemon with a more serious expression. "Now, please tell me what your problem is. We'll help if we can."

"Uh..." Yemon hesitated, obviously taken aback.

"What is it?"

"Oh no, nothing, it's just that... Well, I'm a bit surprised you're offering help so easily."

Nanao smiled, a mysterious smile Yemon didn't manage to decipher, but didn't say anything. When he was about to explain they were rudely, and loudly, interrupted.

"Lieutenant! Lieutenant!"

Nanao rolled her eyes and, puffing in annoyance, stood up, walking to the handrail of their elevated area. "What is it?"

"Lieutenant! We've had a breakout! We-"

The Shinigami skidded to a stop and his mouth opened wide in surprise. Yemon was looking from his sitting place at the desk, and realized it was one of the Shinigami Yachiru had K.O.'d when breaking him out. And he had the bruises to prove it too.

"That's them! They broke out and made a mess at the jail! Lieutenant!"

He reached for his Zanpakutō, but before he could do anything, Nanao pointed at him with two fingers of her right hand, and out of nowhere six glowing rods of solid light slammed on his body, trapping and immobilizing him completely.

"Bakudō sixty-one, Six Rod Prison of Light," Nanao added calmly.

_Bloody hell, kidō, and she didn't even use an incantation until she was done! _Yemon thought.

"L-Lieutenant..." The man grunted.

"Calm down, Juro," Nanao said, giving her back to him and turning to Yemon and Tatsuki. "What's all that about?"

Yemon scratched the back of his head uncomfortably and, after some hesitation, explained the events that had transpired, from the moment they arrived to the Hub to his fight and imprisonment. As he talked, Nanao's expression didn't change one bit, until he got to the part where Yachiru broke him out and they found the Vault.

"And, um, well, that's when we got here," Yemon finished, looking away rather sheepishly.

For a few moments a dense silence set. Then, slowly, Nanao reached up, put a hand on her glasses, and with a swift move, took them off.

Yemon felt the blood in his veins freeze under the stare. He thought Tatsuki next to him had had a similar reaction, but he couldn't take his eyes off that woman to verify it.

"Uh-oh, Nana's angry," Yachiru said.

That was the first time Yemon had heard her voice lacking the usual childish glee.

"Kurosaki-san."

"Y-Y-Yes ma'am."

"Did you have a problem understanding these very simple words? _No killing of any kind is allowed in this town._"

"N-No..."

"Would you say your previous act of provocation was ill advised?"

"Probably..."

"And am I wrong in thinking that you were _more_ than capable of running away to let _us_ deal with the problem if you so had wanted?"

"Y-Y-Yes... I mean no! Not wrong! I... Uh..."

Nanao made Yemon squirm for a few more seconds before putting her glasses back on. Like a weight had been lifted off his chest, he could start breathing again. She lifted her hand and snapped her fingers, and the spell holding her subordinate disappeared.

"Very well then," she told Yemon, and turned around to the Shinigami, "I will send them upstairs later to clean up their mess. Now go back to your post."

"Yes Lieutenant..." The man said in a defeated tone.

"And after we are done here," she continued, turning to Yemon again, "you _will_ go upstairs and you _will_ spend a week in jail. I believe you when you say that you did kill him in self-defense, but your judgement was extremely poor. And I hope you appreciate how lenient I'm being. Is that clear?" She adjusted her glasses menacingly as she finished, and Yemon could only nod in agreement. "And in the meantime," she turned to Tatsuki, and her expression finally softened, "we will be searching for what you need."

The night found Yemon laying on a crude cot inside a cell at the back of the Sheriff's office, after having spent several hours fixing the floor boards and cleaning up the mess Yachiru had created. Together with Tatsuki.

Yachiru was nowhere to be found.

_Sigh._

He munched on one of his ginger biscuits slowly, the only one he had, as the rest of his belongings were safely stowed away in a locker down at the vault. And even though he was physically exhausted, he couldn't fall asleep, running through the events of the day over and over in his head.

_One week in here... Man, I can't believe this. Still, bloody hell, those glasses..._

Yemon shuddered as he remembered the terrifying lecture Nanao had given him. But she had promised they'd look for information for him.

_I hope... Bloody hell what's that racket?_

Yemon listened to some loud voices as they came closer and closer, and his jaw hit the floor when he recognized one of them.

"You _have_ to be kidding!" He shouted, standing up and rushing to the cell's bars.

A few moments later a door slammed open, and two Shinigami walked into the detention area, dragging with them a very fighty looking Tatsuki. She struggled and punched and kicked, until finally the Shinigami opened the door to Yemon's cell and threw her inside.

"A real piece of work you've got there!" One of them said, while the other closed the door. "She's all yours till morning!"

"What the hell have you done to her?" Yemon demanded.

"Done _to _her? She got drunk and started a fight in the Maltese Falcon! She can sleep it off in there till morning."

Yemon looked at the Shinigami, then at Tatsuki, and facepalmed while shaking his head. The Shinigami walked away while Yemon knelt down next to Tatsuki, but as soon as she heard the door slamming, she sat up and grinned at Yemon. She had a few bruises on her face, but looked incredibly happy nonetheless.

"Tatsuki, seriously, what happened this time?"

"Whazzat? I won! Thash happened!" She laughed out loud. "And I wantshed to come in here, 'coz I gotsh thish for you!"

She unzipped her jumpsuit, making Yemon's eyes almost bulge out of her skull and blush considerably before turning away embarrassed.

"Whatsh you doing you dummy?" Tatsuki said, trying to smack him on the back of his head. She missed her target, and instead powered herself to fall next to Yemon, face down and giggling.

"Tsk, really now, how drunk are you?"

She turned around on the ground, reached inside her jumpsuit, and pulled something out, putting it to Yemon's face. After the initial surprise, he realized it was a metal flask. He didn't quite like the smell coming out of it.

"What the hell's this?"

"I hash no id- *hic* idea,"Tatsuki replied, pulling it back and grinning. "But you're gonna have shome with me!"

"I- Agh, Tatsuki!" Yemon complained, turning away again. "Zip that jumpsuit up already!"

"No way!" She complained, and sat up to put her arms around Yemon's shoulders. "No untilsh you'sh taken some. Shay aaaaah!"

She opened the flask with uncanny alacrity, and tried to put it to Yemon's lips.

"Ach! St- Tatsuki! Stop! Ughrm *glug* *glug* Blargh!"

Yemon tried to speak, but his voice came out exceedingly thin as he coughed and spluttered. Tatsuki had another giggling fit, struggling to zip her jumpsuit up again while simultaneously trying to take a drink. The result was a somewhat messy but properly zipped jumpsuit.

Yemon stood up and looked down at Tatsuki in an annoyed fashion. When she tried to do the same she failed miserably, and would have fallen down on her butt if Yemon hadn't caught her. He pulled her up and helped her to the cot, where she dropped to sit down with a big smile on her face.

"Haf anuther one Yemon," she offered.

"I think I've had enough," he replied, still sounding somewhat hoarse.

When he tried to sit down himself, Tatsuki jumped at him and, taking Yemon completely by surprise, reached with her arm under his armpit to grab his neck. Having him thus immobilized, she pushed the flask to his mouth again, giggling all the time.

"Hmph!" *glugl* *glug* *splutter*

Yemon gulped, coughed, and tried fruitlessly to complain out loud while Tatsuki let him go and had a go at the flask herself.

"Tatsuki..." He finally said, speaking in a thin voice, "I said I don't want-"

He was interrupted when she grabbed him by the collar and pulled him to her face.

"You'sh alwaysh shaying what I gotsh to do," she paused to hiccup, and continued, "now I shay, you need to haf a drink with me! Should I tie you down?"

She pushed him back on the cot rather roughly, almost making him fall off. Without saying another word, she furrowed her brow and offered him the flask again.

Yemon looked at the small bottle, then at Tatsuki, and shook his head as he reached for it.

"This is not a good idea..."

"Thish ish a grrrrrreat idea!"

Tatsuki broke out a smile as Yemon grabbed the flask and gave it a tentative sip, and laughed as he coughed in disgust.

"Ugh... This stuff is horrible," he said, looking as if he had just swallowed a can of deep fried slugs while he offered the flask back.

"You'll get ushed to it."

Tatsuki sat back, sipping and looking at Yemon struggle to come to terms with the awful double-distilled horror she had acquired from the Maltese Falcon, and altogether thoroughly enjoying herself.

"Gah, that stuff's awful," Yemon complained again, sitting back and taking a deep breath.

Tatsuki took a shot and, holding on to Yemon's clothes, pushed the bottle to his chest, forcing him to take it.

"I wantsh to know..." She blinked once, twice, then shook her head and continued. "I wantsh to know 'bout the vault. You haven't told me... aaaaaanything 'bout it."

Yemon furrowed his brow with his eyes on the bottle and, after looking at Tatsuki and having her give him a prompt with her head, took a swig before passing it back.

"What you want to know?" He asked, starting to look a bit lost.

"Dunno, whatsh you want to tell me! Whatsh it like?"

Yemon puzzled over it, but didn't seem to reach a conclusion. "Dunno... Normal?"

"Normal? What'sh normal 'bout livin' underground!"

"Well geez, what's normal up here?"

"Here," Tatsuki smirked, and sipped at the flask with an overbearing posh attitude, "we're all quite mad."

Yemon looked at Tatsuki in obvious confusion, making her sigh in disappointment. "You don't have booksh down there?"

"Uh... We have a few. Most are things to study."

"Whatcha do for fun?"

"Dunno. Training, chatting..." He mumbled, thinking. "I did music for a while too..." He quieted down, stopped talking, and after a few moments suddenly started giggling.

"Whatsh it? Whatsh it?" Tatsuki prompted.

"I played the flute, you know? One day... I was in class... Well no I hid... I mean I was hiding in class..." Yemon furrowed his brow at his constant failure to make sense, "sheesh."

"Here, haf another," Tatsuki offered.

After a generous gulp and a few moments of coughing, Yemon managed to resume his explanations on the third try. "So I was, like, hiding, 'kay? And the teacher walks in. We had this really... funny looking... asshole teacher. And he's like, walks into the class, and I start playing this piece, one note on every step he takes. Dum-dedum-dedum..."

Yemon started doing an impersonation of his teacher, doing the steps with his arms, while singing the notes of "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" and making faces of annoyance as he pretended to be the very angry teacher. The impersonation was so sudden, and so unexpected, that Tatsuki couldn't stop laughing the whole time. Yemon would finish it, and as soon as Tatsuki finished laughing, he'd start singing the notes again, prompting an even more outrageous response.

When the joke had finally run its course, Yemon continued his story. "So he got me 'cos I cracked up... just laughing, you know?" He sniggered. "But wait, I got in trouble, but the class were like, you know, dum-dedum-dedum every time he'd walk in class, for like a month!" He started laughing with drunken abandon.

"Hmmm, and you looksh shooooo sherious and reshponshible..."

"Really? Dunno. Maya said that... the same."

"Oh? Whosh Maya?" Tatsuki asked, smiling mischievously.

"Eh? What?" Yemon snapped, not realizing at first what he had just said. "Oh... Oh. Maya."

He grew quiet and reached for the flask, taking a few slow sips while he stared at nothing in the distance.

"Yemon?" Tatsuki finally prompted.

He passed the flask back, but didn't look at Tatsuki. "I wasn't supposed to know. I found out, but wasn't supposed to."

"Know what?"

Yemon continued, ignoring her. "We're not many people. In the vault. Got to take care of the pairings..."

Tatsuki raised an eyebrow. "You're not making... sh... *hic* any shenshenshenshe."

Yemon looked at Tatsuki with a very vacant expression. "Huh? Oh. She's gonna be my wife."

Tatsuki's jaw dropped in surprise, but Yemon continued undeterred, half-mumbling.

"Wasn't supposed to know, so... Didn't say bye. Just left."

Yemon tried to stand up, not even thinking about the fact there was nowhere for him to go, but his legs failed him, and he fell back on the cot. He would have bounced down to the floor, if Tatsuki hadn't miraculously grabbed him and pulled him back. Instead, Yemon fell down squarely on the cot, with Tatsuki's arms around his shoulders.

"Are yoush okay?"

Yemon didn't reply, prompting Tatsuki to sigh and, somewhat roughly, force him to look at her. Even if she made him turn his face, he refused to look at her.

"Don't be like that... Thish ish s'poshed to be fun..."

"Well... It isn't."

She laid back against the wall, letting Yemon's head rest on her lap. "Tsk."

They both went quiet, until the silence was broken by a soft snore. Tatsuki looked down at Yemon for a few moments, and giggled.

"Ya big baby," she chided him, caressing his head and then putting her arm on his chest. "Dun worry. I'll getcha back home."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's notes: <strong>This chapter was just pure fun to write. The whole "Nanao takes her glasses off", for some stupid reason, really makes me laugh. And Tatsuki drunk... Well, no surprises there, right? :D

Blackout1170: Oh yeah. Some earlier than others though! It's all about foreshadowing what's going to happen later, so that you, the reader, can go "ah-hah!" when it happens!


	16. Audaces Fortuna Adiuvat

"There is but one philosophy, - though there are a thousand schools, - and its name is Fortitude. To bear is to conquer our fate!"

**- Baron Edward Bulwer Lytton Lytton, **_The Last Days of Pompeii_**.**

* * *

><p>"Oi, wake up you two!"<p>

The loud voice of the Shinigami, together with the rattling of an unsheathed Zanpakutō over the bars, jolted Tatsuki and Yemon awake. After a fraction of a second, Yemon grunted in pain as he put his hands to his face, dropping his head back on Tatsuki's lap.

"Ow... bloody... hell..."

The noise of the door unlocking made Yemon wince, and Tatsuki put her hand on his head, gently scratching it while smiling knowingly.

"Come on, out you go, Lieutenant Ise wants to speak with you!" The man bellowed.

Yemon winced again, grunting and pressing his hands on his face.

"Shhh," Tatsuki hushed him, and then turned to the Shinigami, "we'll be right there."

"What, you want to stay in here?"

"Just give us a minute," she replied in a soft voice.

The Shinigami puffed in annoyance and stomped away, leaving the door open. Tatsuki kept nursing Yemon until he took his hands from his face and breathed in deeply, opening his eyes slowly.

"Your first hangover, congratulations," she said, smiling down at him.

He opened his eyes wide when he realized where he was sleeping, but when he tried to sit up, Tatsuki pushed him down again with her arm on his chest.

"Ow!" Yemon complained.

"Relax, it's fine."

"It's... ugh, what happened last night? I can't remember..."

"Dunno, last I remember was you singing that piece you did on your teacher."

"Oh, I remember that... I think... Ugh," Yemon grunted, rubbing his eyes, "there was something else..."

"Who cares? That's the point Yemon, have some fun and wake up the next day with a massive headache and a dry tongue!"

"Ow! Not so loud..."

Tatsuki couldn't help giggling, while still caressing his head. "Sorry."

_You don't have to remember, Yemon. But... Well, I hope you'll tell me sometime when you're sober. _

After a few minutes, she shook him gently. "Shall we go?"

"Ugh, I gue- Wait."

"What?"

"What do you mean _we_? Wasn't I supposed to stay here a week?"

Tatsuki's brain finally got into gear, and she opened her eyes in surprise, while mouthing a wordless '_oh_'. "Wait, you're right. What the? Something happened?"

"Let's find out," Yemon replied, rubbing his face vigorously and sitting up.

They walked out of the Sheriff's office under the intense glare of the sun, and Tatsuki had to guide Yemon as he walked around blind as a bat. The positions were reversed when they made it underground where Yemon, relieved by the cool air and safe, underground environment, and prompted by the Shinigami guarding the entrance, guided Tatsuki to the giant library.

They were taken aback by the activity inside. Dozens of Shinigami were pouring over records, books, reading computer terminals, running to and from the massive shelves, and there was a buzz of feverish activity and nervous excitement.

"Bloody hell..." Yemon muttered.

"Kurosaki-san! Arisawa-san!" Nanao called from her elevated vantage position. Sitting by the desk Yemon could see the familiar pink hair of Yachiru, and he didn't need to see Kenpachi because his reiatsu had been bearing over him ever since he set foot in the vault. As they made their way up, Yemon realized all his gear was waiting for him there, and recognized his map on the table, completely unfolded and with several markings on different spots he didn't recognize.

It had all the makings of a war room, and Nanao looked fairly tired, with noticeable bags under her eyes and unusually untidy hair. Yemon was too tired to notice.

"Good morning," He muttered, dropping heavily on a chair. Not far from him, Tatsuki did the same, leaving her gun propped next to Yemon's knife, and unslinging her pouch of ammo and the canteen.

"Good morning? It's noon!" Nanao chastised him, getting a wince back as he put a hand to his head. "What's wrong?" She asked, slightly concerned.

"I seem to have a hangover..."

Her demeanour changed like a switch had been thrown inside her head. "Really," she replied, speaking in a flat voice as her expression changed, and giving a sideglance to Tatsuki. She then took a deep breath, and yelled, "THEN CLEAN YOUR EARS AND LISTEN!"

Yemon nearly fell off his chair, and even Tatsuki winced at the sudden drumming inside her head that the Shinigami's bellowing had brought. The entire room grew suddenly quiet, with every pair of eyes turned towards the Vault's leader. A few moments later the murmur of activity resumed, and work continued as if nothing had happened.

"Bloody hell, wh-"

"Shut up!" She interjected, quickly silencing him as he winced again. "While you were busy getting drunk, _we_ were busy all night working on the holodisks you gave us!"

"Gah!" Yemon complained again. "I was supposed to be in jail a week, if you wanted my help you could have warned me! I didn't ask you to stay up all night!"

Nanao puffed in exasperation, but after a few moments she regained her composure. "Fine. I hope you're normally more reliable than this."

Yemon finally opened his eyes and gave Nanao a cross look, but didn't say anything else. Kenpachi hadn't moved a muscle and was still sitting there with his gaze lost in the distance, looking as bored as anything could be, whereas Yachiru was sharing a huge tray of sweets and baked goods with Dogmeat.

"Okay then," she continued, crossing her arms and adopting a rather elaborate lecturing air. "Have you heard of or met the so called _super-mutants_?"

That fetched Yemon, and after the initial surprise he unconsciously turned to Tatsuki, who looked more than surprised, and a bit too pale.

"I'll take that as a yes."

"Yes, we've had a couple of... _incidents_ with them."

"Survived them too, I see," Nanao commented in a fake idle tone, giving Yemon a look.

"Yes," he replied a little too fast, while his eyes strayed in Tatsuki's direction for a moment.

"Good. According to the data we recovered, these... _things _are being created by Kurotsuchi Mayuri. We don't know why, or what he wants, but they're out there, and we're coming across them more and more often."

Yemon's face had changed with the dawn of understanding. _Shit, that makes sense, that's what was on those broken giant vats..._

"I see that rings a bell," Nanao inquired.

"Yes. When I explored Vault 12 I found some broken giant... _vats_, I guess. I saw a couple of big humanoid skeletons, but I hadn't realized what they were until now."

Nanao nodded, and gestured towards the table. "Speaking of that, I didn't ask you yesterday, where is Vault 12? You mentioned it was empty when you found it, I'd like to send some scouts to recover anything useful..."

Nanao took a brush and hovered it over an area of the map, but Yemon pointed at the old mark east of Vault 14, far off from where Nanao was getting ready to write.

"That mark over there."

She looked rather confused by the revelation. "But..."

"But?"

"That doesn't make sense. I thought that was your vault."

"Oh no. If I had come from a vault, I wouldn't have put it on the map."

Nanao looked at Yemon and managed a small smile. "Still," she pondered, looking at the mark, "that doesn't make sense."

"How so?"

She pointed at a mark on the map, far Northwest, around which she had been hovering her brush. "We expected it to be around here somewhere, based on the layout of Seireitei."

"I see... Well, anyway, I don't think you'll find much there. The whole place collapsed when a hollow I was fighting broke out to chase after me."

Nanao looked up at Yemon in surprise, and after a few moments her hands started trembling until she snapped the brush in half.

"Just how USELESS are you?" She shouted, once again commanding silence from the entire room, while Tatsuki, and specially Yemon, felt like their heads were about to explode. "You FIND the vault we've been looking for since we opened up, go there ONCE, and you DESTROY IT? HOW- *Hmph*"

She was suddenly silenced when a hand pushed an entire bun inside her mouth, and turned to see Yachiru standing behind her with a big smile on her face.

"Nana needs some sweets!"

"M-hm Prhmfidnft!" Nanao exclaimed, but Yachiru put a finger on her lips.

"No speaking with a full mouth!"

It took her a while to chew through the large bun, specially as she couldn't stop giggling every time she looked at the smiling Yachiru. By the time she was done, her annoyance had boiled over, and she was only feeling tired; very, very tired.

"Madam President..." She repeated, and sighed.

"Feeling better?" Yachiru asked.

"I suppose."

"Well, this is all very nice," Kenpachi interrupted, immediately fetching everyone's attention, "but why am I here?"

"Captain Z-"

"I'm not a Captain anymore," he interrupted.

Nanao looked at him and adjusted her glasses, but said nothing else about it. "The problem is, we need to find out what's happening. None of our encounters with super-mutants has gone well. At all."

"So?"

"I don't have enough people that can stand up to _them_."

"Tsk, that's fucking boring..." Kenpachi replied, laying back on his chair and closing his eyes, uninterested.

"I don't know about that," Nanao grinned. Her tone appeared to catch Kenpachi's attention, as he opened his better eye and looked at her. She pointed at one of the marks on the map, some distance Southwest from the Hub.

"That's the Boneyard, isn't it?" Yemon asked, fiddling with his Pip-boy.

"Yes. In the journals you got, Kurotsuchi claims he is running something _big_ in there. Big enough that he gave himself several warnings as a reminder. Whatever it is, if it's connected to the super-mutants, I want to know. _And,_" she added, anticipating the complaint Yemon was about to voice, "it may prove useful for you."

She was pointing at another spot on the map, further west, bearing northwest from the Boneyard.

"What's that?"

"We call it the Necropolis. This is where Karakura Town used to be."

Nanao saying that and Tatsuki scrambling up and to the table were all one. For a moment Yemon thought her face looked like a mask of pure terror, but it was quickly gone as her eyes fell on the map.

_Well, I guess it's to be expected._

"And what's there?"

"Hopefully, something left behind by Urahara Kisuke."

Yemon furrowed his brow. He had offered Nanao an in-depth explanation of his problem and Vault 14, and the map, but had never mentioned Urahara's diary, and it didn't look as if she had gone through her pack.

_She'd have mentioned it._

"What is it?" Nanao inquired.

_She really has a knack for seeing when I'm thinking of something. _Yemon thought. "Urahara Kisuke. Did he have a vault there or something?"

"He had... something like that, I believe, though I never saw it myself."

Yemon turned to Nanao. "And you haven't explored yet?"

"No. As I said, I don't have enough qualified Shinigami. Karakura Town used to be a magnet for bad news and big trouble, and it _still_ is."

"And what about you? You strike me as very capable."

Nanao furrowed her brow and adjusted her glasses, and after a few moments, she turned away, evasive. "I can't take that risk."

"Huh, why not?"

"She... They need me."

Yemon raised an eyebrow as he looked at Nanao. "By _she_ you mean-" He was silenced by Nanao's look as she snapped her gaze back at him, but he made a small smile. "Regardless, you won't be here forever, you should have a backup plan or two."

"I can't force all these responsibilities on anyone, it's_ my_ job!"

"Precisely my point," Yemon retorted, "you are a single point of failure, the best thing for the _Vault_ is not to depend on any single person."

"Bah, what would you know!" She retorted hotly.

"What would I know? How long have you been in charge here? Like, a hundred years tops?"

Nanao was about to reply, but she closed her mouth and looked at Yemon quizzically. The aplomb of his tone and the penetrating gaze he was giving her had managed to throw her off. "What are you trying to say?"

"In a hundred years, you have never been unavailable during an emergency, or even had two things you had to take care of and only be able to be in one place, or sick, or..."

"No! Of course not! No! Why... No!"

Yemon lowered his face a bit, giving Nanao a knowing look. "I know what it's like, okay? And if I'm out here, it's because we ran out of backup plans. You're in a much better position to prepare for uncertainty than we were. Just think about it."

The awkward moment was interrupted by Tatsuki, who had gotten over her initial scare and was examining the map. "What's down here?" She pointed at a mark South of the Boneyard.

"Eh? Oh, that's the 4th's headquarters. We haven't heard from them in a while, I'll be sending someone as soon as possible," said Nanao.

"Vault 4, huh?" Yemon muttered.

"Wait," Tatsuki interrupted, "the 4th, isn't that... What was it... Children of the Cathedral or something?"

"Who?" Asked Yemon.

"The guy that healed you in Junktown, he said something like that, and that they used to be part of the 4th. He said they went around helping people."

"When was this?" Nanao asked, interested.

"About three weeks ago," Tatsuki replied.

"Oh. Well, that's a relief then."

Yemon was working on the pip-boy, adding the destinations, and once again he furrowed his brow when he looked at all the marks.

_It really looks like it's making a big circle._

"So, Ca-" Nanao caught herself, "Zaraki-san, will you investigate?"

"Sounds boring as hell."

"Come on Ken-chan!" Yachiru interjected, jumping behind Nanao and giving her a surprise hug. "It'll be fun!"

"M-Madam President!" She complained, adjusting her glasses and blushing slightly.

"Well, I for one I'm going," Yemon said, and Tatsuki nodded at him in agreement.

Nanao looked at Yemon out of the corner of her eye, but immediately fixed her gaze on Kenpachi again.

"What?" Yemon prompted.

"With all due respect, I would be more comfortable with Zaraki-san."

Yemon looked at Nanao, then at Kenpachi, and made a mental shrug.

_I can see why._

"Ah well," Kenpachi said, gathering his sword and standing up slowly, "I ain't had a good fight in hell knows how long. Better be worth it."

Yachiru let go of Nanao and jumped up and down in happiness. "Yay! We'll bring Nana presents too!"

Nanao smiled, while Yemon started to pack up his gear. He left the map with Nanao, after copying the relevant destinations to the Pip-boy, and once he was ready he turned to Dogmeat, who was laying down very quietly under the desk.

"Come on boy, wake up, we're leaving."

Dogmeat looked up at Yemon and made a small whine.

"What's the matter boy? Come on."

The grey mutt struggled up and took a couple of steps, but his slow pace and uneasy demeanour made it clear he wasn't at his best. Yemon knelt besides the dog, and scratched the fur behind his ears. He whined again, and opened his mouth, as if he was coughing up something.

_Wait a minute!_

Yemon looked at the remains of the breakfast Yachiru had shared with Dogmeat, and realized only too late that dogs and chocolate don't mix.

*BARF*

_Sigh..._

An hour later Yemon finally left the Vault, and he consoled himself with thinking that, at least, he had managed to get a shower and a fresh change of clothes out of the whole ordeal, courtesy of the less-than-amused Nanao. After cleaning the whole mess.

"That's okay boy," said Yemon. He reached down and scratched Dogmeat behind the ears as they walked out of the lift. "It wasn't your fault."

Yemon blinked, half-blinded by the light of the sun outside, and stretched gratefully. After weeks of washing with nothing but a bit of water and a rub or two of soap, the shower had been heavenly.

"There you are, took you long enough!"

He shielded his eyes from the sun with his hand, and looked at Tatsuki walking towards him. "You know, I never thought a shower would feel like such a bloody luxury," said he, with a big smile on his face.

"I'm sure it was, but I wouldn't spend a minute in a little cramped shower underground... Brrrr," she finished, shuddering.

Yemon smiled and nodded. "Shall we go? Where are these two?"

"Oh? Now you're looking forward to travelling with them?" Tatsuki asked, smirking mischievously.

He opened his mouth to reply, but found himself silenced in surprise instead. After a few moments, he scratched the back of his head, looking at Tatsuki with a somewhat puzzled expression. "I guess I am... Well, I dunno."

"Told ya," She replied.

"Told me? Told me what?"

"Told ya, have a drink with me and spend a night in jail, and you'll feel better in the morning."

Tatsuki's response was so unexpected that, after the initial surprise, Yemon cracked up laughing. "I guess you're right. You know me better than I know myself!"

"Come on, they're waiting for us," Tatsuki prompted, resting her Railway Rifle on her shoulder and giving Yemon a gentle slap on the shoulder. She looked down at Dogmeat as they started walking. "Are you any better mutt?"

Dogmeat looked up at Tatsuki and whined in a very convincing fashion, following slowly and forcing them to slow down.

"Aw, you poor baby..." She said, half-jokingly.

"Hey! Shinigami! You with the big Zanpakutō!"

Yemon and Tatsuki turned at once towards the voice, Yemon reaching for his knife without even thinking, and Tatsuki preparing to train her rifle in the direction of the caller.

"Woah woah, hold on!" The man said, raising his hands in an appeasing gesture. He was a dirty-looking Shinigami, wearing a frayed and ragged uniform. He was completely bald, with thick eyebrows and a silly-looking moustache on a broad-lipped wide mouth.

"Who are you?" Yemon asked.

"What do you want?" Tatsuki asked too, almost at the same time.

"I'm the guy you busted out yesterday, remember me?"

"Huh? Who?" Yemon replied, puzzled.

"You crashed through the ceiling! Don't you remember? You made one hell of a brawl out there, pretty damn impressive..."

Yemon's gaze strayed upwards as he thought, trying to remember, until he finally muttered "oh, right."

"Yeah, so, thanks man, really saved my butt."

"Well, I didn't even know you were there," Yemon replied, letting go of his knife, "but you're welcome."

"Great. I'm on my way back to the Brotherhood, you should come sometime, I'll ask the Captain to pay you back, okay?"

"Uh, the... brotherhood?" Yemon asked, looking at Tatsuki who merely shrugged back at him.

"Yeah, the Brotherhood of Steel! Got a map?" He asked, making his way towards them in the least threatening way he could muster. "One of the caravans drops by every other month, you could go with them too. Hey what's this?" He inquired, looking at the map on the Pip-boy. "All right, that's pretty neat. Here, we're around here..." He pointed at a spot, and Yemon added a mark, "You should be able to find it easy, or as I said, just come with the caravan."

"I see. You guys don't happen to know about vaults and whatnot, do you?"

He hesitated, scratching his shiny bald head. "Well, I guess I can tell you. Used to be a vault, back in the day. It was before my time though. We have a lot of old tech, not sure what you're after, but I'll vouch for you for the Captain."

"Really? That's great, thanks!" Yemon replied, rather upbeat. "I'll definitely go."

"Cool. Name's Rush by the way, look me up when you come by!" He finished, jogging off and waving at them.

Tatsuki smirked as they saw the Shinigami disappear in the distance. "Well, isn't that nice."

"What?"

"We've got a few clues to follow now, don't we?"

"Yes," Yemon replied, fiddling with the Pip-boy, "let's just hope it takes us less than a year to get there..."


	17. Search the Unexpected

"Frightened? Child, you're talking to a man who's laughed in the face of death, sneered at doom, and chuckled at catastrophe."

**- Wizard of Oz, **_The Wizard of Oz_**.**

* * *

><p>"You think that's the place?"<p>

Yemon squinted under the glare of the morning sun and looked in the direction Tatsuki was pointing. There was what appeared to be either a large settlement or a large chunk of abandoned ruins, but it was too bright for him to make out.

"Maybe."

"Is it the right place?" Tatsuki insisted.

Yemon consulted his Pip-boy and nodded. "Roughly, yes."

"Are we finally here? Are we?" Yachiru interrupted, with more than her usual childish glee.

Yemon laughed and nodded at the pink-haired young woman, unslinging his pack. He subsequently unzipped it, reached inside, and grinned. "Say aaaaaah!"

Yachiru opened her mouth and closed her eyes, and Yemon fed her a whole ginger cookie.

"I can't believe you bribed her to get here faster," said Tatsuki, grinning and shaking her head.

"Well, it worked, less than a week to get here! As long as I have some of these left I guess."

Yemon fed Yachiru a second cookie and packed up again, while the now sugar-fed Shinigami mumbled something which sounded a lot like "doggie!" and started chasing Dogmeat once more, at a leisurely pace and making towards the town.

The path took them down a ravine and towards a boxed path between tall walls of rock. Tatsuki hesitated, looking at the top of the crevasse they were walking with a mistrusting eye.

"What's wrong?" Inquired Yemon.

"This is a perfect place for an ambush," Tatsuki replied in a low voice.

Yemon closed his eyes and concentrated. "All I can feel is Kenpachi's reiatsu," he paused to open his eyes and grin at Tatsuki, "and quite frankly, I'm not sure who'd be stupid enough to..."

"Hoooooooooo!" A sudden loud interrupted them, and at that moment several raiders appeared atop the crevasse, pointing at them with a variety of firearms. Two had rifles, another two appeared to have handguns, and the rest were just posing and trying to look tough.

"… attack him," Yemon finished, looking around; a quick count put the newcomers at eight.

"Well, well, look at this," the same voice said, and all five pairs of eyes of the travelling company turned to the leader of the raider party, "what a nice haul."

"Raiders!" Yachiru perked up, with a disturbingly enthusiastic tone.

"Why yes, very-"

"Dibs!" The pink-haired Shinigami shouted, interrupting him and earning herself puzzled looks from everyone but Kenpachi.

Yemon raised an eyebrow. "Dibs? What the-"

His question went unanswered when he spotted Yachiru's move out of the corner of his eye. He turned to see her disappearing in a blur of shunpo, prompting a very nervous reaction from their opponents as weapons were suddenly trained in their general direction. The Shinigami, however, reappeared mere instants later, standing right on the same spot from which she had disappeared.

"What was that?" Asked Yemon, confused.

"What the hell were you trying to do?" The leader of the raiders echoed, while all guns and eyes pointed at the young woman.

Yachiru was grinning, and mumbling something. "Three... Two... One..."

Before she reached zero, Tatsuki charged at Yemon and forced him down to take cover, and even before they had hit the ground, eight near-simultaneous explosions tore through the air above them. Small pieces of rubble, dirt, and even a few red wet bits which could only be remains of the raiders' body parts rained on them.

"And the pants go boom!" Yachiru shouted, jumping up in the air with a pumped fist held high.

There was a very still moment as Tatsuki and Yemon tried to get their bearings.

"What the hell happened?" Yemon shouted, louder than he had intended due to the ringing in his ears. A few of the raiders had fallen from their position atop the cliff, and none of them were still in one piece. For what Yemon could see, they had been blown up at the midriff, every last one of them.

"You blew up their _pants?_" Said Tatsuki, echoing Yemon's thoughts and looking at the grisly scene of slaughter in disbelief.

"Yes!" Yachiru replied, all smiles, and looking inside the bag she had been carrying on her shoulder, the one Yemon had been wondering ever since they left the Hub. "I still have a few left..."

Yemon walked towards her and looked inside the bag, and was nearly shocked out of his socks when he realized it was full of frag grenades and mines. Or at least half full, because it had been fuller not a minute ago. Yachiru smiled and dropped the used pins inside, and he realized she had a _lot_ of pins in that bag. And many of them looked rather rusty and old.

"Do you... go around _exploding_ people's _pants_?" he asked in disbelief.

"Exploding pants! It's funny!" She giggled. "But only for the bad guys."

"And you keep the pins..."

"… to count them!"

She ignored the looks she was getting from both Tatsuki and Yemon, and jumped up to Kenpachi's shoulder as he resumed his walk, drawing from his infinite supply of aplomb.

"Bloody hell," Yemon muttered.

"No kidding," said Tatsuki, looking around herself, "I couldn't believe it when I saw her."

"When... Wait."

"What?" said she, turning to Yemon.

"You _saw_ her?"

"Uh... Yes?"

"Planting the grenades?"

"Yes?" Tatsuki replied again.

Yemon arched his eyebrows as he looked at Tatsuki. "Wow. All I saw was a blur."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I guess your training is paying off."

Tatsuki mouthed a wordless 'oh' and, after a few moments, shrugged and smiled. "I guess it is. Still can't keep up with that girl though."

"Shall we go then?"

"Off you go," she replied, gesturing with her head towards the departing Shinigami, "I'll catch up."

"Huh?"

"Well, since you don't like this..." she said, looking at the nearest corpse.

It took a few moments for the penny to drop, and when it did, Yemon sighed and shook his head. "Okay, fine, let's do it."

A few minutes later they left the dead raiders behind, carrying all they had been able to salvage, which was disappointingly little. Rifles and much of the ammo had been ruined, and all Tatsuki had bothered recovering was one of the 10 mm pistols, four clips of ammo, and a handful of .32 rounds.

"Wasn't too bad I guess, considering they've all been blown up," said Tatsuki, securing the gun in the holster in place of the revolver she had placed back inside her leather bag.

Yemon nodded but didn't say anything. He still found what they had done absolutely repulsive in his gut, even though he had no reason to. He knew that, at the very least, those eight had wanted to take them for all they had, and probably worse.

"I told you to go on ahead," said Tatsuki, interrupting his thoughts.

"I know, I know. I have to say I'm surprised though, I expected you to toss this thing aside and take one of those hunting rifles," Yemon pointed at the railway rifle as he spoke.

"Are you kidding?" Tatsuki interjected, taking the rifle off her shoulder and priming it, pointing ahead as they walked. "They were completely smashed, but anyway this thing is awesome. I mean sure, it's freaking heavy, and the spikes are, too, but it packs a hell of a punch. I love it to bits!"

Yemon smiled at Tatsuki's enthusiasm, but didn't say anything else. They finally caught up with Kenpachi, Yachiru, and Dogmeat at the entrance of town, where two armed guards seemed to be having a conversation with Kenpachi.

"Uh-oh..." Yemon muttered.

The entire town was the usual run-down shanty town one could expect in the wasteland, only it was completely surrounded by a patched and re-patched wire fence, crowned by sharp barbed wire and glass.

_Is all that to keep people out or in?_

"Kurochi! Blueberry! What took you so long?" Yachiru greeted them.

"Just looking for treasure," Tatsuki grinned. "What's going on?"

"I was just telling your friends, weapons away, and no funny business, the Regulators are watching everyone here," one of the guards said, eyeing the railway rifle.

"Well, it's not like I can put it in my pocket, is it?" Tatsuki replied.

"You can shove it up your ass for all I care, but you start something and you'll be dead before you hit the floor, got it?" He made a gesture with his head towards the town as he finished, and Yemon saw the place was teeming with armed guards everywhere. "We'll be watching you all the time."

"Someone's spoiling for a fight," Kenpachi interrupted.

Seeing where things were going, Yemon quickly made an interruption of his own, talking as assertively as he could. "Look, who's in charge here? We just want to get some info and be on our way."

"That'll be Zimmerman, but he ain't got time to wastelanders like you."

"I'm sure he'll make time, I need to talk to him about Kurotsuchi Mayuri."

The guard furrowed his brow. "Never heard of him."

"I bet you haven't," said Yemon. "Where can we find Zimmerman?"

The guard took a few moments to answer, until he finally took a step back and cleared the way. "Right that way," he gestured with his rifle, "the large building. Don't do anything stupid."

"_You're one to talk, getting on Kenpachi's face,_" Yemon muttered as they moved in, throwing a sideglance at Kenpachi, who was walking without a care in the world. _Well, guess he doesn't really care._

His eyes instead fell on Yachiru, who was looking at something she was holding with great interest. "What's that Yachiru?"

"This? Dunno!"

She offered the thing to Yemon. It was a sort of circular hoop, about the size of his hand, and with a three pronged metallic badge inside. It looked sort of like a radiation warning symbol.

"Where did you get this?"

"Oh? That annoying little man had it in his pocket," she replied, pointing back at the guard.

"He... Bloody hell Yachiru," said Yemon, quickly putting the badge inside Yachiru's bag of explosives, "don't just take things like that without warning!"

"But I was curious!"

"Aren't you always? Look, let's just see what this Zimmerman guy has to say, try to act civilized until we do. Please?"

"Okaaaaaay."

Yemon looked around as they walked, conscious of how much attention they were drawing to themselves, and also conscious of the fact that he could see more guards than regular people. And every one of them seemed to be sizing them up as they went.

_Bunch of idiots all of them. Nevermind me, they're actually sizing up these two?_

He led the group into the well ventilated building, with so many holes Yemon had to wonder how it was still up. He didn't have to do much searching before running straight into the person who seemed to be in charge, surrounded by four well armed guards and looking as if he had a general none-too-happy outlook of life. He was a fairly large man, with a square jaw, a balding head with salt-and-pepper hair and squinty eyes under a pair of very bushy eyebrows.

"You must be Zimmerman," said Yemon.

"I don't remember inviting a travelling circus into town," Zimmerman replied.

"Hilarious," Yemon replied, glancing around and hiding his relief at seeing Kenpachi yawning with complete boredom. "Name's Kurosaki Yemon, we're looking for Kurotsuchi Mayuri."

"Never heard of him."

"Look," Yemon continued, trying to switch to an I'm-so-reasonable tone under the amused gaze of Tatsuki, who was holding her rifle with an exceedingly casual pose, "it's not a big deal, if you don't know where he is it's fine, we know he was running some sort of big experiment here at some point, so just point the way and let us take a look." Yemon paused for a moment, but as Zimmerman didn't react, he tried to finish in a somewhat amused tone. "I'm not meaning for free of course," he finished, switching from trying to tap his bag of caps to pointing to the one Tatsuki was carrying after he remembered Yachiru had made short work of his money just a few days ago.

Tatsuki raised an eyebrow at Yemon, but didn't say anything.

_He's being rather direct today, I wonder..._

Zimmerman sat back on his old chair and eyed Yemon and the rest with a curious eye for several seconds. He ended by looking around at his armed guards, and smacking his tongue in a rather disagreeable way before speaking.

"Okay, fine. But you gotta do us a favour first."

"Oh?"

"Got a small gang problem here, you see. Or rather, a possibly large one. There's a gang that's made their home in our little town, the Blades, gather at a house up at the north end. My boys can handle them," he added, seeing Yemon's eyes stray towards the armed guards around himself, "but they've been talking with a bunch of gun runners that've come by few days ago. Go up there and break them up, and then we'll talk."

"You have to be kidding me," Yemon replied, looking unimpressed. "You have enough guards here to start a small war, you want us to-"

"Pretty simple kid, don't want to waste my boys in a senseless fight. You can start something with us, or start something with them, it's up to you."

It was an interesting proposition, and Yemon quickly realized there was really only one way to resolve it. He turned to Kenpachi and made a questioning gesture, raising his eyebrows and shrugging slightly.

"Fucking pointless, not interested either way," said Kenpachi, and then puffed in annoyance, "I knew this would be a waste of time."

Yemon shook his head and sighed. "Okay, fine, we'll take a look, but no promises," said he, and then furrowed his brow when he looked at Zimmerman, "what kind of experiment was Kurotsuchi running in this place anyway?"

"Oh don't worry," the large man replied with an ugly grin, "you do this and I'll be happy to show you."

Tatsuki and Yemon exchanged a look, and they shortly left the building, with the disappointed Kenpachi and the ever bubbly Yachiru in tow.

"Well, what do you want to do then?" Asked Yemon.

"You kids do whatever you want, I'm going to get a drink," said Kenpachi, and without another word he turned and started to walk off. Yachiru quickly followed jumping on his back and putting her arms over his left shoulder, asking _Ken-chan_ if she could have one too. Dogmeat took a few steps after her, but stopped to look back at Yemon.

"That's okay buddy," Yemon smirked, "go ahead and keep them out of trouble."

The grey mutt barked once and took off after the young Shinigami, wagging his tail as he did.

"Those two have become best buddies, haven't they?"

"No kidding. Anyway, I can't say I blame Kenpachi," Tatsuki said, looking at the large man go with the pink-haired girl perched on her shoulder, "this is ridiculous."

A shake of his head was all Yemon offered as agreement. "Shall we go anyway? If nothing else, these gun runners may have something worth buying."

"Sure," Tatsuki smirked, "I've got here-"

She went suddenly quiet, and when Yemon looked at her, he saw her searching herself while looking left and right with obvious urgency.

"What?" Said he.

"My caps! I've lost them! Someone bloody robbed me! I can't belie-"

Her tirade was interrupted by the sudden outburst of laughter from Yemon.

"What's so goddamn funny?" Tatsuki snapped.

"Eh-hehe, you had your bag of caps in there, right?" Yemon asked, pointing with his thumb over his shoulder at the central building.

"Yeah, so?"

"And you don't have it now."

"Yes? What's your point?"

"Well, between there and now the only people that we've been with are Kenpachi and Yachiru, Kenpachi said he was going to have a drink, and unless he wants to start a bar fight, which, mind you, would probably amuse him, he's got to pay for it."

Tatsuki arched her eyebrows in puzzlement. "So?"

"Yachiru, most likely. She's the sneakiest thing I've ever seen."

"Oh come on, you have to be kidding me!"

"Ah, it's not a big deal really, is it? She's not going to drink... How much did you have?"

"About six hundred caps."

"How much booze can you buy with that?"

"Yeah, right, probably enough to knock even Kenpachi out. But still!"

Yemon laughed again, much to Tatsuki's annoyance. "Look, let's just go talk," said he, starting to do just that and prompting Tatsuki to follow, "you can probably trade in my revolver for something if you want."

"You sure?"

"Eh? What do you mean?"

"Dunno, figured since you brought it with you out of the vault and all that..." She shrugged.

"Nah, it's fine, my father told me to trade it in for something bigger if I had the chance."

Their conversation had led them to the outskirts of the settlement, past one of the barbed wire fences and into a more open area. A dilapidated building lay ahead of them, with a faded sign at the front, an advertising for a shaving tool and the brand "BLADES" plastered across it. There were several wastelanders milling about, men, women, and children too.

"Think that's the gang?" Yemon inquired.

"Maybe. They don't look much like a gang to me though, they even have kids?"

The feeling of distrust was mutual, as several of the Blades were looking at them approach with a rather unfriendly disposition. However, their face-off was averted when a deep rumble started shaking the ground.

"What the hell?" Tatsuki and Yemon shouted nearly simultaneously.

A moment later a series of tall walls rose from the ground all around the open area, at such speed that a casual observer could have claimed they blinked into existence out of nowhere. Yemon and Tatsuki looking around confused, but the Blades seemed to be in quite a state of excitement, rushing inside their building and with a confused cacophony of shouts and warnings.

"Not good," said Yemon, reaching back for his knife. "I was expecting _something,_ but not this. You?"

"Not at all," Tatsuki replied, priming her railway rifle. "Can you jump over that with shunpo?"

"It's not called-"

"Can you or not?" Tatsuki snapped.

Yemon took a moment to give the nearest wall a good look. They were ringed in behind twenty meter tall smooth walls, in such a wide area there was no way to use anything else for leverage to reach the top. "I'm afraid not."

There was a second, lower rumble, and a second structure started to rise in the middle of the courtyard, not a hundred yards from where they were standing. For a moment it looked like the top of a square building, but it soon started raising unevenly, revealing a wide opening on one side.

"Underground tunnel?" Yemon offered.

"Looks something like that. I'm not going down there," said Tatsuki.

"No need, I think something's coming up."

The rumbling stopped, and Yemon could feel some diffuse reiatsu coming up. It was hard to tell, as if it was being blocked by something. A deathly silence settled, not a sound came from the Blades' building. Tatsuki dropped the canteen and her leather bag, taking a few bundles of spikes and putting them in her pockets. She then primed her rifle, aiming in the general direction of the opening. Yemon heard her breathing, deep through clenched teeth as she tried to steady herself.

Yemon's fingers played with the Quincy symbol hanging from his wrist, tapping it repeatedly as he tried to decide whether to use his bow or use his knife.

"I don't like this," Tatsuki muttered.

"You're telling me."

"Can you feel it?"

"Uh-huh," Yemon nodded.

"It's not what I think it is, is it?" She paused for a moment, and only continued when Yemon didn't reply, "please don't tell me..."

"Okay," said Yemon, and let a small pause hang before finishing. "I won't."

Tatsuki let out a muttered curse, while Yemon unslung and dropped his pack, and reached back for his knife. He had recognized the reiatsu of what was coming, something that he had felt only once before. Only it was stronger.

"Get ready Tatsuki."

"Any chance we can leg it?"

"Not likely. But there is room, we can take it," Yemon replied, pulling his knife free and readying his guard.

"Aren't you going to use your bow?"

"I'm thinking one of us should take point. I'm assuming you don't want the honor?" Yemon smirked, tilting his knife towards Tatsuki in a half-hearted offering.

"I'd suck with something like that, get me some brass knuckles and we'll talk."

A familiar, large figure emerged from the shadow of the underground entrance, and both Yemon and Tatsuki gulped once.

"That's bigger than I remember," said Yemon.

"I fucking hate deathclaws," Tatsuki replied, eyeing the nine feet tall rambling beast.

"That's a lot bigger than I remember," Yemon insisted.

"Focus Yemon, still time to use your bow."

The beast turned towards them, as if it had heard Tatsuki's voice, and for a moment, Yemon had the feeling of having made eye contact with it. It let out a screeching cry, and a moment later it charged at them, moving with extreme alacrity on its long, powerful legs, and closing the distance between them so fast Yemon could only follow the movement of reiatsu. He pushed forward with Hyrenkyaku as fast as he could, and met the deatchlaw with his own blade as he passed. The steel-on-claw contact let out a shower of sparks, and a moment later Yemon was forced to counter with a wide swipe to hit the second claw, and make a third swipe as he jumped back with another Hyrenkyaku.

As soon as he had pulled, Tatsuki opened fire. She was still at longer range than she'd have liked, as the railway rifle wasn't as accurate as she'd have liked, and of her two spikes only one managed to hit, and a glancing blow at that. The beast screamed when the spike bounced over its ribs, turned to Tatsuki, and charged at full speed. Yemon followed quickly, but was nearly knocked out when he didn't see the deathclaw's tail making a swipe at him until it was right on him. He blocked awkwardly with his blade, and was tossed aside.

He heard two more shots, and the deathclaw's scream of pain. On his second attempt, he buried the tip of the blade on the ground to have more leverage to block, and as the beast cut its own tail against Yemon's knife, he let go of it and, with a quickly summoned bow, let loose a single arrow before jumping back, pulling at the cloth on his knife's tang to recover it. It had been so quick that the Pip-boy had barely managed a ping before his bow disappeared.

He was greeted by a screech of pain from the deathclaw, and managed to catch a glance of a rather ugly open wound on its back before he bailed out.

_Gotcha! I bet that hurt you bastard._

Yemon didn't let himself get lost in thought, the deathclaw had now turned to him, and his demonic, half-masked face looked completely distorted, in pain or anger he couldn't tell. But the beast proved to be much too fast for him, and he had to duck and dodge awkwardly out of the way of a frenzied swipe that was thrown before he had time to grab his knife properly.

He turned expecting a second attack, but it didn't come. The deathclaw screamed, and Yemon thought it looked stuck in a rather awkward position, until he saw that its other hand had been nailed to its back. He didn't waste time, and finally managing to grab the tang of his knife properly, made a swipe at the free arm while Tatsuki ran through, firing another three spikes at a target Yemon didn't manage to see, but he deduced it had to be its legs. As the arm he had just cut went flying, Tatsuki pulled out again.

"Reload!" She shouted.

Her yell had been for naught, Yemon hadn't heard her because all he could focus on was the badly wounded deathclaw. It trashed about, unable to move the leg that had been nailed to the ground, or free the arm that was nailed to its back. He pushed forward and plunged his knife deep inside the beast's chest, and letting go of it, summoned his bow, raising his reiatsu steadily and prompting a crescendo of croaking from the Pip-boy. The deathclaw was screeching in a way he had never heard before, not just in pain but with a tone and cadence that sounded as if it had a real meaning, but soon it was silenced as Yemon fired an arrow at its head, hitting the beast upwards under its jaw and blowing the best part of its head off.

After a few moments, it crashed onto the ground, twitching involuntarily as it died.

"Bloody hell," Yemon muttered, trying to get his desperate breathing under control. He had gotten the worst of the tail lash on his left shoulder and it was starting to hurt like crazy after the heat of battle started to recede. "Are you okay Tatsuki?"

"Just fine," she muttered, breathing hard too in a manner not unlike his own.

When Yemon turned to look at her, he saw she was wiping blood from her nose, and the left side of her face appeared bruised. He had no idea when it had happened.

"We bloody got it, great-"

They both clamped up silent when a chorus of screeches emerged from the open tunnel. They looked at each other, and an instant later they both snapped to action, Tatsuki readying her rifle and Yemon pulling his knife out of the dead deathclaw.

"Tatsuki, there's more of them!" Yemon shouted.

"I know you muppet!" Tatsuki retorted.

He looked back at Tatsuki, and realized their fight had brought them pretty close to the Blades' building. His brain was telling him something about why the building had been enclosed in the walled area with them, but he was too preoccupied with not becoming the next deathclaws' meal to follow it up.

_Wait, that's-_

"Yemon!" Tatsuki shouted, bringing him back to Earth.

"You're sniping Tatsuki," Yemon replied, unflappable.

"What?"

Instead of answering, Yemon pushed ahead and, grabbing Tatsuki, jumped to the roof of the low building with Hyrenkyaku. It wasn't much higher than the height of the deathclaw they had just killed, and the decrepit construction looked like it'd crumble under their feet if they stepped on the wrong place.

"I don't think this'll help, I'm sure they can jump or crawl up here or something," said Tatsuki.

"We'll see, you shoot them from up here and I'll take point at ground level. Let's hope we can pull this off, with a bit of luck."

"Just a bit?"

"Maybe a lot."

"This isn't a sniper rifle Yemon, it's big, it's heavy, and it's not very accurate. Or I'm the one who's not very accurate, I don't know yet. I have to get used to it. It kicks ass, but I have to be close."

"I don't think that'll be a problem," said Yemon, and he turned towards the opening. The reiatsu was sharp and clear, and one by one, four deathclaws stepped out of the tunnel. When he was about to jump down, Tatsuki reached out and grabbed his sleeve.

"Don't be thinking of doing this just to keep me safe, okay? We're in this together."

Yemon turned to Tatsuki and smirked. "Yes we are, I'm counting on you to keep my ass safe down there. If we can keep them split we have a chance, let's do it."

"All right," Tatsuki replied, matching Yemon's smirk with one of her own and letting go of him, "let's do this thing."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>Freaking deathclaws, the Boneyard was always one of my least favourite parts of the game. I mean, if you can kill the deathclaws, what's the point of fighting your way through them to talk with the gunrunners? What kind of gun can they possibly offer you?!

Some cool upgrades here though, the plasma rifle was upgraded for free at a shop over there.

Blackout1170: Probably just mildly amused. Although I have to admit it's more of a "me" thing, it just cracks me up how there's a specific statistic in Fallout 3 to track how many pants you have exploded :D Fight-wise, I have plans for Kenpachi to enjoy himself a lot more. Oh yeah. Just wait! :D


	18. Hitting the Mother Lode

"It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog."

**- Mark Twain.**

* * *

><p>As the deathclaws walked out of the underground passage, sniffing and searching as they rambled, Yemon took a moment to look at them, and then at his companion.<p>

"What?" Asked Tatsuki.

"I'm about to do something massively stupid," Yemon answered, firming his grip on his knife, "I hope you've got me covered."

"Massi... What exac- Oi! Yemon!"

Without answering, Yemon disappeared in a blur of Hyrenkyaku. Tatsuki rushed to the edge of the building, carefully stepping on the few surviving beams to see Yemon hacking away at the dead deathclaw, until its mashed-up head finally rolled away.

"What the hell is he doing?" Tatsuki muttered.

She didn't have to wonder for long. Yemon swiped his blade to get rid of some of the blood, hung it on his back, and grabbed the head by the only surviving horn. There was a surge of reiatsu from Yemon, and even though she couldn't hear the Pip-boy's croaking, she saw the blue flaring of his Quincy symbol.

_Oh for f- You're trying to bait them?_

The deathclaws quickly perked up, following the reiatsu, and after the shortest pause, where Tatsuki had the impression the whole world was standing still, Yemon and the deathclaws moved towards each other at full speed.

"I got your back!" Tatsuki yelled in what she hoped was an encouraging way, and primed the rifle in the direction Yemon had disappeared.

_I can see him moving. Thank you Yachiru!_

Yemon stopped at a prudent distance and tossed the head towards the deathclaws. The beasts moved away by instinct, but they appeared to realize in a few moments what it was, because they all roared and charged at Yemon once more. He moved with short Hyrenkyaku jumps backwards towards the building, manoeuvring left and right in what may have looked like random pattern.

From her vantage position, Tatsuki realized they were being herded close together.

_What the fuck's he doing? He can't be thinking of taking them all at once!_

Her hand trembled over the release valve of her rifle. Her gut was screaming for her to start firing before all four of those things pounced on Yemon, but her head was processing what her eyes were seeing, and that was Yemon looking cool and controlled, moving around and looking more and more calm on every jump.

It wasn't until he was within spitting distance of the building that Yemon made his move. He made a very fast jump backwards to give himself some room, and started shooting with his bow as fast as he could. The closest deathclaw deftly dodged the arrows, but the one that was following barely a meter behind wasn't as lucky, never having had a chance to see them coming before it was too late.

Tatsuki followed the first deathclaw with her rifle, and with a quick muttered prayer to any deity that cared to listen for her aim to be true, opened fire before it reached Yemon. She was so high that she saw the first spike flying through the air in slow motion, and hit the deathclaw's outreached hand, throwing it off balance and prompting a very satisfying roar of pain. She fired a second one at its leg, and once again the spike nailed the beast, this time on the leg, with a bone-shattering crunch.

She no longer had the element of surprise. The other deathclaws had not stopped, and Tatsuki saw two charging at Yemon, not seeing the third that he had mortally wounded with his bow.

"Move Yemon!" She shouted, firing a third spike at her quarry before turning to the newcomers.

Yemon reached for his knife and charged at the farthest enemy. Tatsuki's heart felt like it had tried to pounce out of her chest when she realized just how close Yemon was trying to cut it with the nearest hollowified beast. She aimed at that near one, and started firing at the fastest pace she could muster. One, two, on the third spike the outstretched arm was ripped from the deathclaw's shoulder, and the last two spikes were just aimed at its body, but she couldn't tell if they had had any effect. The cries of pain and anger of the deathclaws were almost deafening, and she couldn't tell which was which.

She could tell she was empty, and three of them were still alive. Two wounded, but alive.

"RELOAD!" She shouted at the top of her lungs.

The first bundle of spikes she took out of her pocket slipped from her trembling grasp and dropped to the floor, and a fumble later they fell through a hole on the roof to the room below her feet. As she mentally walked through her entire repertory of curses and imprecations, she took a second bundle out and, forcing herself to go slowly through every step, she started to reload her rifle.

One by one the spikes fell into place, and she gently pressed the release valve to spin and lock the loader. Yemon's reiatsu had spiked once, and now was moving all over the place, but he was alive and she was done. Eight more shots.

"Tatsuki watch out!"

It was a superfluous warning, because the roaring of the deathclaw that jumped to the top of the decrepit building was all the warning she needed. She slammed the lid shut and raised the rifle, but her hastily fired spike met only air as the roofing gave under the weight of the large beast, and it crashed through and inside.

There were screams. Screams of terror. Screams of agony that were cut off with a roar and a disgustingly loud wet splash.

"Dammit!" Shouted Yemon.

"Yemon, no!"

Her warning was for naught. She rushed over the surviving beams of the roofing as the wall collapsed under Yemon's Quincy bow's assault, and opened fire on the deathclaw before he rushed in blindly and got himself killed. She wasn't even counting her spikes this time.

_Goddamit Yemon, stop trying to save everyone! You're gonna get yourself killed!_

She felt sick as she thought of that while trying to kill the deathclaw (and it was the one-armed one, though she didn't even realize at first). Yemon had saved her, she only ever thought of saving herself, and dammit if she hadn't nearly gotten Yemon killed because of that.

It wasn't the truth, but feelings have a way of being irrational.

All that was interrupted when something fell from the sky at incredible speed and crashed on top of the deathclaw, creating a massive blast of air and nearly knocking her off her feet. She heard the familiar growls, barks, and chomping of Dogmeat as the dust settled, and when it finally did, Yachiru was standing on top of the head of the sprawled deathclaw. Only, instead of the head, there was only a splatter of red around her feet, looking like she had stepped on a watermelon.

"Kurochi! Blueberry! You're having all the fun without us?" Yachiru called, waving at her with a big smile on her face.

"Yachiru! Where the hell did you come f- Watch out!"

She turned quickly and aimed at the incoming deathclaw, but before she could fire, it was replaced in front of her eyes by Yachiru, who, in taking the deathclaw's place in Tatsuki's eyes, had given it such a kick that it flew straight out of the crumbling building in three pieces.

_Holy crap she's fucking scary._

"Where's Yemon?" Tatsuki shouted.

"Out here!" Said he.

She jumped down to ground level and rushed out. Yemon was standing next to the mangled body of one of the deathclaws, clutching his left leg while Dogmeat sniffed the remains with a low growl. His muzzle and belly were covered in blood. Not his blood, she guessed. Or hoped.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine, it wasn't bad," he replied, looking at her and, with a small grunt of pain, smiling.

"Where's Kenpachi? Is he-"

Her question died in her lips when she turned back to Yachiru, and her eyes strayed to what was behind her. There was the dead deathclaw, and quite a few people standing at the end of the room, the Blades she guessed, huddled together against the wall and looking at the scene in terror. But what really caught her eye was what was between she and the Blades. Scattered along the floor were the sliced remains of she didn't know how many people. Her brain then let her notice the revolting, thick smell of blood and carnage, it wasn't just the deathclaws' remains.

Yemon's voice woke her up. "Tatsuki, are you okay?"

"Yes, fine, sure," said she, stumbling on every word. "Ya-Yachiru, is Kenpachi with you? I think there are more of these things."

"Sure is! You were having all the fun by yourselves, but the big one is just coming!" She replied, pointing ahead and casually shaking the bloody bits of deathclaw brains that still clung to her waraji.

Yemon raised an eyebrow as he looked in the direction the pink-haired Shinigami was pointing. Kenpachi was standing in front of the underground opening. "The big what? Ouch!" He yelped, losing his footing and falling to one knee.

"Yemon!" Tatsuki rushed to his side. "Look, just wait here, I'll go get your pack with the medkit. Hows the leg?"

"Ugh. I told you it's not too bad. Just-"

His explanation was interrupted when the ground started shaking under their feet. Almost immediately, a muffled roar was heard. And after a few moments, a surge of reiatsu. Whatever it was, it was really strong.

"Bloody hell, what is that?" Said Yemon.

Before answering, Tatsuki looked back at the Blades. Adults hushed the children, and there was a repressed sense of terror. She thought about asking, but decided to just let them be, and turn to Yachiru instead. "Do you know?"

"Not really! But when I told Ken-chan there was something here he looked so happy, look at him!" The pink-haired Shinigami replied, pointing ahead with a big smile on her face. Kenpachi was standing at the mouth of the tunnel, with his sword on his shoulder.

And even though Tatsuki couldn't see it, he was grinning.

"Okay Yemon, you stay here and just use your bow, I'll-"

"Don't be silly," Yachiru interrupted. "Ken's fighting, so don't get in the way!"

Tatsuki looked at Yachiru in surprise. "What? Are you crazy? You're not going to help him?"

"Ken-chan doesn't need help! And he doesn't like it when others get in the way when he's fighting." She disappeared in a blur of shunpo, and her voice came down from the top of the building. "Woooow, the view is a lot better up here."

Yemon grunted in pain as he propped himself against the wall, still clutching his leg. The roaring was getting louder, and the pressure of the reiatsu sharper and more oppressive. Tatsuki frowned as her own heart accelerated; staying there and doing nothing, neither fighting nor running, went against every fibre of her being.

But that was Kenpachi standing right there, and he didn't even move a muscle.

The rumbling intensified, and one last roar, or yell, or more exactly a blood-freezing howl of anger, came directly from the underground tunnel opening as a rambling beast started to come out. As it did it seemed to fill the entire opening, and then press against it, and finally stood through the roof of the tunnel's mouth, bursting through it and letting out a mighty roar.

It was as big as a house. Tatsuki gulped with difficulty and looked at Yemon, who was looking at the scene with the same dumb expression she imagined she was wearing herself. Huge, and with an even uglier mask than any deathclaw she had ever seen.

_Holy shit, that's the mother of all deathclaws._

She hadn't meant it literally, although it was pretty close to the mark. And meanwhile, Kenpachi still hadn't moved a muscle.

"Shit, you're too damn big. Ain't that fun to fight you big guys, always have to cut off bits here and there," said he. "Ah well," he shrugged, and extended his sword arm with a swipe, pointing outwards. The shockwave from his movement cut through the ground and hit one of the outer walls, making large chunks of it go flying. "Ya gonna fight me then, or just stand there and stare me down?"

The deathclaw let out a growl as it looked at Kenpachi. Its reiatsu surged even more, flaring wild and untamed, and its eyes shone a malicious red deep from the devilish hollow mask. With a final roar, it brought down one of its claws on the Shinigami at incredible speed. The contact was almost electrical, reiatsu against reiatsu, and the shockwave kicked up a great cloud of dust and debris.

As the dust settled, the figure of Kenpachi standing on the same spot could be made, holding his sword in one hand over his head and blocking all four clawblades bearing on him with it. And his right foot was pinning down the thumb of the enormous hand.

"That all you got?" Said he, speaking in a disappointed tone.

For a moment the deathclaw pressed harder, and Kenpachi's feet dug deeper under the pressure, one into the ground, another biting into the deathclaw's flesh. With another scream, it pulled the claw back and tried with the other, and then the first one, and kept pounding with a one-two move for what seemed like an eternity. The cloud of dust grew until it almost covered the entire area, and Tatsuki and Yemon covered their eyes as best they could, under the screams of terror from some of the younger inhabitants of the building behind them.

"What the hell is he doing!" Tatsuki shouted, getting no reply other than a few barks from Dogmeat.

Once again, calm came after the attacks, but even before the cloud had settled completely, Kenpachi made his move. He appeared as if completely unaffected, jumping straight towards the face of the deathclaw and with a mighty sweep, cutting over it side to side with his sword. There was a shower of sparks as blade and hollow mask collided, but as the two opponents moved away from each other, Kenpachi carried by his jump, the deathclaw by the powerful impact of the attack, neither appeared wounded.

"Bloody hell, it took Kenpachi's full-on attack?" Said Yemon. He looked up at Yachiru, but the young woman was merely standing at the edge of the decrepit building, looking at the fight with an easy smile on her face.

Kenpachi didn't say anything, he merely looked at the gigantic deathclaw and smirked. The beast made a new attack, and as Kenpachi blocked, it made a surprise swipe with its tail, hitting him on the side and sending him crashing twenty meters across. Without even stopping, the monster opened its mouth, and a glowing red ball of spiritual energy appeared in front of its maw.

"What the..." Yemon furrowed his brow as he muttered.

"Cero!" Tatsuki shouted.

The blast came with a spike of soul-crushing reiatsu that hit their shoulders like a ton of bricks, and a distorted high-pitched note that preceded the explosion of its impact. Tatsuki let out an involuntary yelp as she ducked, landing on Yemon, and the blast of air nearly sent them both flying.

When Yemon looked up his jaw went slack at what he saw. He had never seen an attack like that, but he felt it was intensely strong. And yet, Kenpachi was still standing. Not just standing, he had his left arm extended with the left palm facing out.

_He's blocked it. With his _bare hands_. Bloody hell, this guy's insane!_

A jolt of pain got his attention back. Tatsuki was again working on his leg.

"What was that?"

"That was a cero," said she. Her voice was strained, and Yemon thought her own reaction to the outcome had been the same as his. "That's... That's an attack strong hollows can make. The stronger the hollow, the stronger the cero."

"Bu- Ouch!"

Tatsuki silenced Yemon with an extra tight turn of the bandages.

Kenpachi grinned at the deathclaw, or at himself, it was hard to tell. He lowered his hand and tapped his shoulder in a playful manner with the back of his sword.

"A cero? We ain't gonna get anywhere at this rate. Yer steppin' it up or what?"

There was no immediate response. No roar, or yell, or shout. Only a low growl. The reiatsu did not increase, it was just as heavy and oppressive as before, but it felt sharper, brimming with malice. When it charged, it did so at a blindingly fast speed, and its swipe was so fast Yemon only saw a fain trace of yellow reiatsu making an arc through the air. Kenpachi didn't see it, or didn't bother to move, but it hit him square on the chest, and the long blade-like nails of the deathclaw stained themselves in Shinigami blood.

The second attack was blocked by Kenpachi, and as the pushed it back and aside, he jumped back and put some distance between him and the deathclaw.

He put his left hand on his chest and looked at it. Blood, a familiar sight, but one he hadn't seen in a long time.

"Yenpachi!" Said Yemon.

"Stop that Kurochi," Yachiru reproached him in a playful tone. "Don't distract Ken-chan."

"B-But..."

Kenpachi's grin widened, and he looked up at the deathclaw. "Been a long time since I've been cut," said he, as he readied his own blade. "My turn."

Much like the deathclaw had done, Kenpachi charged forward in a reckless fashion. The response from the monster was fast, but its hand met the nameless Zanpakutō of Kenpachi, and two of its fingers flew through the air, sliced clean in a single sweep. As the beast screamed in pain, Kenpachi rushed up its arm, and made another swipe when he was high enough to reach its chest. Its cut was shallow, even though it drew blood, and yet the attack was so powerful it cut past the beast and hit the ground, cutting through it and cutting a large rend through the soil.

The deathclaw cried out at last, both in pain and anger, clawing at its own shoulder trying to get to Kenpachi. He swung a second time, and drew blood, before being tossed aside. As soon as he had landed it threw itself at him, grying to bite his head off. Instead it met Kenpachi's weary-looking Zanpakutō to its jaw, and as it roared, and they both pushed against the other, Kenpachi made a grimace of disgust.

"Sheesh, what have you been eating?" Said he, and with a final push cut through the deathclaw's jaws, sending a good chunk of it and a few teeth flying.

The beast pulled back, screaming in pain, and when Kenpachi was about to make a second attack he had to stop, dodging the tail swipe it had thrown. He did the same with a second one, and before the third, the deathclaw made a sudden swipe with its less than complete hand.

It sent Kenpachi flying back several meters, crashing on the rubble of the underground tunnel entrance.

"Kenpachi!" Yemon shouted.

There was no answer. The deathclaw growled deeply, its voice punctuated by the dripping of blood from its maw. After a few moments, it turned to the building, and Yemon felt a chill up his spine.

However, the feeling was short-lived. Kenpachi's reiatsu slammed on them with the sharpness of icy death. And as it did, the deathclaw's intact arm went flying, cut at the shoulder, and while it screamed in pain, so did most of its tail.

"Man, it's such a pain to fight enemies with so many blades," said Kenpachi.

"Don't cut them all off Ken-chan!" Yachiru shouted.

"I know," Kenpachi answered.

Yemon looked at the exchange with breathless amazement. Kenpachi's reiatsu was thick and suffocating, collecting around him in the shape of a yellow skull. He hadn't seen it since the first time they had met, and now he realized it had not been as strong as it was now. And he was covered in blood. Some was his, some was his enemy's.

_I guess that's what real bloodlust is. Sheesh._

"Come on, you still have a few left!" Said Kenpachi, and rushed to meet the new attack head on.

"Okay Yemon, how is that?" Tatsuki asked, sitting back and taking a deep breath.

Yemon rubbed his wound and grimaced. "That's great, thanks," said he, looking up at Tatsuki. She hadn't lost her tense expression, and even then she was avoiding looking back. "What's wrong?"

She didn't answer. As if following Yemon's thoughts, Dogmeat approached her and, with a small whine, rubbed his muzzle against her arm. She reached up and scratched the dog's back.

"Tatsuki?"

She looked up. "What?"

"What's wrong?"

"No, just thinking..."

Yemon waited, but had to prompt her when she didn't continue. "Yes?"

"If... If it wasn't for those two..."

"Yeah," Yemon smirked. "Really saved our bacon here, didn't they? Hm, what is it?"

Tatsuki was looking at Yemon with a rather weirded out expression. "How can you take all this so lightly?"

He reached out and mussed Tatsuki's hair. "Nah, it's you, stop overthinking things."

"Dammit, I'm serious!" She retorted, grabbing his hand and pulling it away, which prompted Yemon to start laughing.

"That's more like it!"

His answer silenced Tatsuki until a smile forced itself onto her lips, followed by a chuckle and a shake of her head.

Their attention was diverted to the battle after a tremendous crash and a cry from the deathclaw. Much like before, it was anger, and pain, but more than that, it had a note of agony in it. Kenpachi stood on the chest of the fallen deathclaw, holding his sword high, and with a last mighty swing, finished it off with a chop that cleaved its head in half.

"He won..." Yemon muttered.

"Of course he won. Ken-chan is the strongest!" Said Yachiru, jumping down from her vantage position and waving at Kenpachi.

"You okay Yemon?" Tatsuki asked as she offered him a hand to stand up.

"Yeah, thanks," he grimaced, favouring his right leg. He looked around at the mess that the battlefield had become. "How are we going to get out of here?"

"That's easy," said Yachiru, and disappeared in a blur of shunpo.

"What the heck?" Yemon looked at Tatsuki, who merely shrugged at him.

They left the Blades behind without even a second glance, and walked back to the blocked way they had come, following Kenpachi. Before they reached the wall, the entire structure collapsed before their eyes, dropping down to ground level in less than a heartbeat.

If Yemon and Tatsuki were surprised (not Kenpachi, Yemon very much doubted anything ever surprised that man), those on the other side were no less shocked than them. Many of the guards had been waiting on the other side, and their faces showed how unexpected that outcome had been for them.

"Well, that was mildly amusing," said Kenpachi, breaking the silence. "Ya want some too?"

Like one, all the guards pointed their guns at them, but so loose was their aim, and such was the trembling of their hands, that it seemed unlikely a single bullet would be shot. Until a more familiar voice rose above the murmurs of the rabble.

"What are you waiting for?" Zimmerman shouted, from well behind the bulk of his guards. "Kill them all! Shoot them!"

A blur of black and pink passed through the space between them, and the guards found themselves under a rather painful assault of punches, kicks, and giggles. Bullets started flying, but found no target.

"What are you doing you idiots? Kill them! Kill-"

Zimmerman's desperate shouts for his guards to act died when he found a rather large and bloodied figure in front of him, looking down with a blood-freezing killing intent. He didn't even see the sword that cut through his chest.

He fell down clutching at the gaping wound, as the world started spinning and strength abandoned him. From the ground the imposing figure of Kenpachi could be described in one word.

_Death._

The Shinigami's finishing attack did not meet its target. Kenpachi's sword embedded itself into the ground when Zimmerman disappeared, and reappeared a few meters farther, carried by Yemon. The latter dropped him and clutched his leg.

"What the hell are ya doing?" Said Kenpachi.

"I need him alive!" Yemon shouted, turning to the large man. "He must know about Kurotsuchi!"

"It's too late you moron, have to finish him off."

"Are you deaf? I said-"

"Yemon!" Tatsuki interrupted him, shouting and rushing towards him. "You idiot! What are you doing? Kill him!"

His brain didn't put it together until it was too late, why they were so insistent on him finishing Zimmerman off. He felt a strange spike of reiatsu behind him, and just as he turned, something hit him on the chest. It all melded together confusedly in his mind: a hollow mask, something going through his chest, its arm, and his legs failing under him as he fell back.


	19. Goodbye to Yesterday

"The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not knowing, not curing, not healing and face with us the reality of our powerlessness, that is a friend who cares."

**- Henri J.M. Nouwen, **_The Road to Daybreak: A Spiritual Journey_**.**

* * *

><p>Tatsuki's brain refused to process what her senses were telling her. The entire world had frozen before her eyes; Yemon was standing with his back to her, looking at the hollow that Zimmerman had turned into, and an arm was coming out of his back. Blood dripped from its outstretched fingers.<p>

It didn't make any sense. Why was there an arm there?

Slowly, the arm pulled back, and now instead of a limb sticking out of Yemon's back, there was a hole. As he started to fall backwards, Tatsuki's heart throbbed, while a deathly chill set inside her chest.

She didn't even remember how her railway rifle had gotten to her shoulder, but a moment later she had emptied it on the hollow, rushing towards Yemon. She dropped the rifle and reached for her gun, but gave up when Dogmeat jumped at the badly wounded monster with a ferocious growl worthy of Cerberus himself. While the grey dog finished the hollow, Tatsuki dropped to her knees by Yemon.

"Yemon! Yemon! Can you hear me?"

Blood. There was blood everywhere. She loosened and pulled Yemon's pack, and started rummaging through it in less than an eyeblink. But she realized it was useless. Her breathing had become thin and forced through a constriction ion her throat. All she could see was blood. Nonetheless, she grabbed a stack of gauzes from the pack and stuffed them in the chest wound. A wave of red quickly started to soak them.

_I could put my hand through that hole. Shit. Of course I could._

"Yemon, please speak to me," she said in a strained voice. She grabbed his face with both hands to make him look at her.

He moved his mouth, but didn't produce any sound she could hear. His eyes were unfocused and dull.

_What do I do? Dear god what do I do?_

"I need stimpacks!" she shouted, looking left and right. A small crowd had started gathering around them, and Kenpachi was one of them, looking down at the scene with a flat, serious expression. "ANYONE HAS A STIMPACK!"

Yemon started making some choking noises, quickly arresting Tatsuki's attention. He was dying in her hands, and there wasn't a damned thing she could do.

"Yemon!"

A man broke from the crown and walked slowly towards them. He stood next to Yemon and lowered the rifle he was carrying, pointing at his head.

"Stand back girl, it's too late for-"

"GET AWAY FROM HIM!" Tatsuki shouted at the top of her lungs.

Almost immediately Dogmeat rushed in, snatching the rifle off the man's hands so fast Tatsuki only saw a grey blur passing. With a growl, he snapped it in two with a single bite. The circle of people around them widened immediately.

"Anyone tries that and my dog will bite your balls off!" She looked down at Yemon again. He was very pale, and trembling weakly; he wasn't even trying to cough anymore as he tried to breathe. The image became blurry as tears filled her eyes and started to stream down her face. "Dammit... Dammit all..."

"Blueberry!"

Yachiru's sudden outburst nearly made Tatsuki jump up in place in surprise. When she turned, she didn't even see the Shinigami's face, all she saw was what she was offering. She had extended her hands to Tatsuki, and she was holding four stimpacks.

Where she got them from, how she did it... it didn't even cross Tatsuki's mind to ask. She snatched them and without even thinking about it, started plunging them into Yemon's chest, one after another, pulling the blood-soaked gauzes out of the wound and looking at the white liquid ooze out of the sides of the hole. Tissue started regenerating slowly, closing the wound.

"Waste of stimpacks if you ask me..." someone from the crowd muttered.

She didn't even hear the comment, or notice Yachiru kneeling next to her by Yemon's legs. Right before she used the last stimpack she had a change of heart, and instead used it to inject the hollow extract into Yemon's arm, hitting the main vein.

_He's lost so much blood. Will this work? Mercy, please let this work. Please..._

"Yemon." Tatsuki put a hand to his cheek. There was no reaction. He was very still, and deathly pale. She moved her hand to search for his pulse on his neck, and for a second time her heart throbbed as it became pure ice.

There was no pulse.

_Shit, shit!_

Placing both hands on his chest, at the bottom of the ribcage, she sat up and started pushing down.

"Yemon! Dammit, don't give up!"

_One... two... three... four... five. Two breaths._

"What the hell am I going to tell Karin?"

_One... two... three... four... five. Two breaths._

She tried finding his pulse again. Nothing.

"What about your parents?"

_One... two... three... four... five. Two breaths._

"WHAT ABOUT MAYA DAMMIT!"

_One... two... three... four... five. Two b-_

When she tried to breathe into Yemon's mouth she found she couldn't. It felt like the airways were obstructed. She searched his mouth with two fingers, and pulled out a thick white semi-liquid mass from it. It started to solidify as soon as she pulled it out, a hollowesque white she didn't like at all. That same liquid was slowly dripping out of Yemon's glassy eyes.

Without even thinking, she slapped him as hard as she could.

"FUCK YOU! I'M NOT LETTING YOU DIE!"

She gave him two breaths of air and went back to pushing on his chest with renewed energy. On the third push she felt a crack under her hands, but didn't let it deter her. She continued, having to clean Yemon's mouth two more times. Tears were still running down her face, and she didn't know whether they had started coming out again, or had simply never stopped. But she continued, she didn't know for how long.

_Four... five. Two breaths._

For a fleeting moment, Tatsuki thought Yemon had twitched. She put her fingers on his neck, and for a third and final time her heart throbbed, but there was no chill to go with it.

Weak, but it was there. A pulse.

_Oh my..._

After a few more mouth-to-mouth breaths, Yemon started breathing by himself. Tatsuki sat up to look at his face. Half his face was covered by a white mask, and she couldn't even remember where it had come from. She grabbed it without hesitation, pulled with all her might, and ripped it off his face. She tossed it aside.

"Yemon, can you hear me?"

No answer. But he was breathing. She shook him and put one hand on his face.

"Yemon? Yemon!"

Slowly, Yemon half-opened his eyes, and his lips moved as he tried to speak. "… T... su... "

Tatsuki put both her hands over her mouth, covering something between a laugh and a gasp, and nodding while her tears continued running freely down her face.

At that moment, Yachiru jumped at Tatsuki and embraced her with a very energetic tackle-glomp. "Yahoo! You did it Blueberry!"

While Yachiru squeezed Tatsuki, Dogmeat walked closer and, after sniffing Yemon's face a couple of times, gave a small whine and licked him. Yemon muttered something unintelligible, but otherwise didn't even move. The scene continued uninterrupted for quite a while.

_He's alive. He's alive!_

The murmur of the crowd was loud enough that Tatsuki finally took notice of them. There were all sorts of expressions on the faces looking at them. Surprise, shock, fear, and even some that looked genuinely happy. For the first time Tatsuki took stock of what the people were like; she couldn't see a single guard (_Yachiru took care of all of them?_), it was all wastelanders and, she thought, a few of the Blades.

An approaching commotion distracted her attention. The crowd parted as the noise grew louder and closer, and finally it opened to show a group of well armed people with a less than friendly disposition marching towards them.

"That's her!" one of them shouted.

He was pointing at Yachiru. Soon several guns were pointed at her as well.

"Hey hey, hold it, stop!" Tatsuki yelled, standing up with raised arms. "What's going on?"

_These idiots are going to get themselves killed!_

"Out of the way girl, that Shinigami just robbed us!" a scruffy-looking thin man yelled, gesturing with his rifle for Tatsuki to step aside.

Tatsuki realized quite a few of them looked like they had been beaten up not five minutes ago. She swallowed the curse that tried to escape her lips. That's where the stimpacks had come from. "What? That's nons-"

"I was in a hurry!" Yachiru interrupted, getting everyone's attention.

_You really did, didn't you? _Tatsuki thought. "Look, calm down, we'll pay for the stimpacks, okay?"

"Should've thought about that before! You'll-"

The new tirade the scruffy-looking man was about to embark on was cut short when a mountain of reiatsu crashed on everyone's shoulders. All but a handful of people fell to the ground, and the ones that managed to stay upright couldn't do much more than merely stand and give it their best not to fall face first. Tatsuki's legs didn't buckle, but felt like they really wanted to.

Kenpachi's grating voice cut through the scene like a scythe. "You looking for a fight?"

The few members of the gang that managed to face up towards Kenpachi did so with absolutely terrified expressions. As quickly as she could under the circumstances, Tatsuki rushed to stand in front of Kenpachi.

"Wait Kenpachi, please." She turned to the gang, and crouched next to the scruffy-looking man. "Look, I'm sorry for the trouble, but we'll pay for it, okay? We're not thieves, just... just calm down."

He could only nod in agreement. Tatsuki managed a smile she hoped would be reassuring, and turned to Kenpachi. After a few moments, and with a final even more crushing pulse, he suppressed his reiatsu, and the weight of the world was lifted from everyone's backs.

The sense of relief was generalized and immense, and a goodly number of people made their exit and ran away. The gang members stood up with varying degrees of slowness; their anger and resentment was still clear to see, but it was masked by a generalized sense of fear.

Scruff was the one to talk again. "And how are you going to pay? Stimpacks ain't cheap, and she took all we had!"

"How about the guns from the guards?" Tatsuki smirked. "We just finished... clearing..." Her voice faltered as she looked around at the fallen guards. They were laying naked here and there, several of them looking as if they had been given a _coup de grace _while laying down, and they had all been stripped down to their underwear. And no weapons could be seen.

_Figures._

It wasn't something that surprised her, it was typical of the wasteland. But looking at Yemon laying on the ground, and after everything that had happened to get them there, she couldn't help feeling anger bubbling inside her.

"Well, that's just GREAT!" she shouted, looking around at the few wastelanders that were still around them. She pointed at Yemon. "He risked his life to get rid of the deathclaws for you! And the first thing you do is loot the bodies while letting him die! You fucking radroaches, all of you!"

Her outburst didn't meet much opposition. Some people looked away embarrassedly, others were looking at Kenpachi in fear. Tatsuki puffed in annoyance and turned to Scruff.

"Look, let's take a look in Zimmerman's office. You can have whatever is there." She turned to Yachiru. "You still have my bag of caps?"

"Sure!" She smirked, pulling it out of her sleeve.

"And there's that," Tatsuki finished, pointing at the bag and looking at Scruff.

"Okay fine," the man answered, and then started muttering, "not that we have a choice with that monster..."

After a signal from Scruff, the gang started to move towards Zimmerman's old office. Tatsuki turned to Yachiru one last time, and took her bag of caps. She looked at Yemon, and gave a deep sigh. "Can I let you take care of Yemon? And take the medkit and do something about him too." She pointed at Kenpachi with her thumb. He was still covered in blood from the last fight. "I'll go deal with these guys."

"Don't worry! I'll take care of Kurochi!"

Tatsuki let her gaze linger on the scene for a few moments. Her brain tried to loop through what had been a very long and exhausting handful of minutes, but it was still too much and too soon to take in. A few meters from where Yemon was laying, Dogmeat had made a royal mess out of Hollow Zimmerman.

_He snapped that rifle in half too... This dog's really something._

She shook her head, picked up her railway rifle, and reloaded the weapon while casting sideglances at the gang waiting for her. Hiding a grin, she looked up at Yachiru again.

"Yachiru."

"Yes Blueberry?"

"Well, just... Thank you. You're a lifesaver."

Yachiru didn't reply, she just smiled widely and made a cutesy with her head. Tatsuki smiled back and, after giving Yemon one last look, left with the gang towards the central office.

It wasn't until darkness fell that Tatsuki finally had some time for herself. The gang turned out to be the group of gunrunners that had set camp on the outskirts of the settlement. Even though she had been in an enviable position to negotiate with them, thanks to the less-than-subtle threat from Kenpachi, she still had wanted to make good on her promise to pay them back for the stimpacks.

_I think Yemon's rubbing on me._

She chuckled softly as she walked down the dark street, finding her way with the railway rifle's light. The hideout had turned out to be a good find, she had found a weapons cache that the gunrunners had been quite happy to take as payment, and she had traded in Yemon's revolver for extra ammo for her 10mm gun and a pair of brass knuckles. She tapped the back pocket of her jumpsuit, feeling the weight of her new toys and grinning.

Weapons aside, the most interesting thing had been the computer system. There were pages and pages of archives about the deathclaws and the research Kurotsuchi was conducting there. Too much to go through in one sitting.

_Well, I'll be back tomorrow. I really need to sleep._

Following Kenpachi's reiatsu, she soon found the ruined building they had chosen to spend the night in. She cast her gun's light about to get her bearings, and quickly switched it off when it fell on her companions. Kenpachi was sitting in a corner with his back to the wall, sleeping, with Yachiru laying down on the floor with her head on his lap. Even though she had only taken a quick look, he seemed well bandaged up. Not far from them Yemon was laying on a dirty mattress directly on the floor, resting under his blanket. And curled up by his master, Dogmeat was sleeping peacefully.

"What a lovely scene," Tatsuki whispered, smiling.

She tiptoed her way in as silently as possible, but as soon as she walked close Yachiru's voice interrupted her stolen walk.

"Whassit Bluberry?" she muttered.

"Oh, sorry, didn't want to wake you," Tatsuki said, speaking in a whispered voice too. "How are they? Kenpachi and Yemon?"

"I'm fine." Kenpachi's deep voice startled her. "The kid's sleeping."

"Okay."

There was nothing else to say. Tatsuki knelt by the mattress and, not being able to see Yemon's face in the darkness, she reached out and put her hand on his ribcage instead. He was naked from the waist up, and she could feel the mark that the attack had left on his chest. But there was no wound now, and she let her hand rest there for almost a minute, just feeling it go up and down with his soft breathing. She feared that it would stop if she removed her hand.

_Sigh, don't be stupid._

Shaking her head, she dropped her gun and belongings and laid down with her head on the mattress. She felt Dogmeat stirring next to her, so she reached out and scratched the dog, who whined in reply.

"I woke you up too, boy?"

Dogmeat sniffed Tatsuki's hand. He half-stood and then laid down again, with his head by Tatsuki.

"You were great today. Your master is really lucky to be your friend."

She closed her eyes and reached up to her hair, always trying to stroke the hair-clips that were no longer there.

_You would have patched him up in a jiffy, wouldn't you Orihime?_

As she started to drift into sleep, her head started to sort out all the images and memories of the day, and in the process dug up one recurring memory that always came uninvited.

The moment she woke up under Orihime's shield.

She curled up in a fetal position on the ground, crossing her arms over her stomach. It had been more than a hundred years, but every time that memory came back, every time a dull but persistent pain set inside her. It had been waking up to agony. The pain she had felt when Aizen had ripped her apart and torn her insides, that same pain had come back with everything Orihime reversed. She hadn't realized until days later, but under her screams Orihime had been saying the same thing over and over.

_"I'm sorry."_

Tatsuki grunted, clutching her stomach more tightly.

_What the hell were you apologizing for..._

Her thoughts were blessedly sidetracked when a hand landed on her shoulder.

"Yemon?" she said, opening her eyes. There was no answer. She turned to lay on her back and reached up with her hand. It was Yemon's hand, but he was still fast asleep. She chuckled softly. "I wonder why you always reach out in your sleep."

She squeezed Yemon's hand gently, and got a small involuntary squeeze as a response, but didn't wake him up. She put both their hands on her chest, and sighed, closing her eyes. She fell asleep in a matter of seconds, this time without any unwanted memories appearing uninvited.

In what was starting to become a routine occurrence, Yemon woke up to an unfamiliar ceiling. He felt sick and took his sweet time to get his bearings. He was very weak, and bringing his arm up to feel his chest demanded an uncommon amount of effort from him.

"Bloody hell, that hurts," he said, muttering and barely moving his mouth. The noise had been enough to get the attention of the only other guest in the dilapidated room. A short moment later, a very happy Dogmeat was licking his face. "Ow, ow, boy stop it, I feel like crap..."

Yemon tried to reach up to pat the dog, but gave up halfway through and just let his arm fall down to the dirty mattress. The grey mutt, however, took a step back and, after barking twice, fled the room as fast as he could.

"Uh... Must've smelled a squirrel or something."

Memories started to come back, muddled and confused. He couldn't remember how it had happened. The last thing he remembered clearly was the walls of the Deathclaw courtyard dropping, possibly because of Yachiru (she had been there, on the other side, big goofy grin on her face and pink hair whipping in the wind). It probably had happened in the next fight. Once again, Yemon put his hand on his chest and started exploring. Something hurt like crazy on his left side, but on the right side he found something weird, some sort of roundish mark, much too big for it to be a simple scar.

He closed his eyes and tried to relax. There was something else, gnawing at the edge of his consciousness, like an uninvited guest. Something felt wrong.

"Yemon!"

Tatsuki's voice woke him up. He let his head fall to his side to look in the direction of the voice. Dogmeat in tow, Tatsuki had entered the building and was running at full speed towards him.

"Hi there, Tat- OUCH!"

In her rush, Tatsuki had fallen to a sitting position on her knees by Yemon, but her momentum had made her fall forward, and without even thinking she had landed with her hands on Yemon's chest. "Ah, sorry! Sorry! I'm so sorry!" She jumped back very quickly.

"Ugh... It's okay... Shit that hurts."

Tatsuki put her hand on Yemon's chest, much more softly this time, over the large bruise on the ribs she had cracked. "How are you feeling? You've been out for two days! Shit, you're lucky to be alive! I should-"

"Tatsuki, please."said Yemon. She shut up and just waited him out. "Not feeling great."

"I can imagine. Sorry, the cracked ribs are my fault."

"Uh-huh. My face hurts too."

"Ah!" Tatsuki hesitated. "Yeah, that may have been my fault too, sorry."

"What... What happened?"

"You can't remember?"

"Not really, last I-" He was interrupted by a fit of coughing, which in turn prompted a heartfelt grunt of pain.

"Hold it, wait," Tatsuki said, standing up. She returned with the canteen and, holding Yemon so that he could lean forward a little, she helped him drink some water. "As I said, you've been out two days. You must be starving too."

"Not really," Yemon said, laying back again. "I'm feeling sick."

"Well, I'll get you some food later anyway. You need to eat to recover your strength." She waited for Yemon to reply, but since he didn't, she insisted on her questioning. "So, what do you remember?"

"Just... After fighting the Deathclaws. We were leaving, then Yachiru dropped the walls, and... It's very confusing after that. Was there a hollow somewhere?"

"You sure you don't remember where the hollow came from?"

There had been an edge to Tatsuki's question, which caught Yemon's attention even in his sad state. "No, why? What happened?"

Tatsuki sighed. "Look, listen to me carefully."

She recounted the incidents from the start of the fight with the guards, or rather, the one-sided curb-stomping Yachiru and Kenpachi had administered, and how Yemon had prevented Kenpachi from finishing Zimmerman. And the consequences of that.

"I've told you over and over Yemon, you have to stay on your toes out here. You told me Seth was waiting to kill me back in Shady Sands, you knew about how people can turn into hollows when they're dying! And you went and not only stopped Kenpachi, you gave your back to that guy and just didn't pay attention!"

"Tatsuki..."

Tatsuki was too excited to stop. "Why don't you ever listen to me? We kept shouting at you to finish him off, and you just ignored us! Next time-!" She caught herself and stopped her tirade, taking a deep breath in with closed eyes. When she opened them again, she looked at Yemon and simply reached out and caressed his hair. "I'm sorry, it's just... I nearly lost you."

He sighed in return. "Sorry."

"Next time please pay attention, okay? I know you always want to save everyone, but out here that can get you killed. Please?"

Yemon smirked and nodded.

"So yes, that on your chest is indeed a scar. If Yachiru hadn't found those stimpacks... Well, even then, it was a very close call."

"So the ribs..."

"Got a bit too... _enthusiastic_ when giving you CPR."

Yemon chuckled, and immediately grimaced in pain.

"Anyway, just take it easy, okay? Dogmeat's gonna be here with you, but I'll check often, if you need anything at all just call us."

"Uh-huh... Uh, Tatsuki..."

"Yes?"

"Well... Thanks."

"Hey now! What did we say about keeping scores and thanking each other?" she said, still caressing Yemon's hair. "But you know," she grabbed his hair firmly, "if you _ever_ do that to me again, I'll kick your ass." She finished by letting go of Yemon.

"Heh. Okay."

Tatsuki nodded and smiled, and was about to stand up when Yemon reached out and grabbed her arm. He didn't say anything, but looked like he was struggling with some thought.

"What is it?" Tatsuki prompted.

"How did you know about Maya?" The room went suddenly quiet, and as Tatsuki didn't answer, Yemon continued. "I wasn't sure if I had dreamed it, I thought I heard you screaming at me about saying something to Maya, but... Well, I guess I did hear it."

"Uh... You told me about Maya."

"I told you we're getting married?"

"Uh-huh." Tatsuki nodded. "Guess you don't remember, you told me when we were in prison. Maybe you were slightly too drunk at the time."

"I see..."

"Please, don't take me wrong, I just... If you didn't remember and it was such a personal thing, well, I just thought I'd say nothing. Maybe you'd feel like telling me some other time when you were sober."

"It's fine."

"Okay." She nodded, and smirked. "Don't worry, I'll make sure you two have your dream wedding."

"It's not like that..."

"Huh? Not like what?"

Yemon let go of Tatsuki and settled more comfortably on the mattress. "It's an arranged marriage. Because there's so few of us, all pairings are very tightly controlled to avoid problems. You know, inbreeding. It's all very business-like."

Tatsuki opened her eyes wide in surprise. "Really? That's... Wow, that's nuts!"

"Not really. I found out earlier than I should have, but it makes sense. If we want to stay in the vault for several generations, it has to be done."

"Does she know?"

"Probably not. Well, maybe she suspects. She's a smart girl. When I found out... Let's just say that the way our parents pushed us to be friends made sense. Maybe she has figured it out too."

"It sounds like quite a bit more than friends." Tatsuki furrowed her brow, and after a short pause continued prodding Yemon. "So what's she like?"

"She's okay. She's quite fun too, doesn't mind when I get us in trouble. A good partner in crime. And she's very handy as well, she's apprenticing at the recycling station and she's good at it too."

"Uh..."

"What is it?"

"That's... It's just a bit strange. I mean, she's your fiancée, I was expecting you to describe her and what you like about her. Do you actually _like_ her?"

Yemon took his time to give an answer and, when he did, he didn't sound particularly committed to it. "She's okay. She's a good girl."

"Okay. You know, life in the Vault keeps sounding weirder and weirder. You're gonna have to tell me more..." She got distracted by the strange half-smirk that Yemon had made. "What? What is it?"

"No, just that it's funny. Not ha-ha funny. We seem to have a lot of unfinished conversations."

"Huh?"

"I told you a lot about the Vault... Back when I was taking you to Shady Sands. No surprise you don't remember it though."

She made a wordless 'oh' with her mouth, and matched Yemon's smirk. "Strange conversations, huh? I guess we do. Well, let's leave that for now, just try to rest."

"More wasted time..." Yemon said, sighing.

"Not _this_ time. Yachiru and I are turning the place upside down, there's a huge underground lab here, where Kurotsuchi was growing the deathclaws, and we've recovered a sack of holodisks to go through. Really, Yachiru's the most amazing scavenger I've ever met, she can find anything."

"Really? What have you found? Do you kn-"

"Easy there," Tatsuki interrupted, resting her hand on Yemon's chest. "As I said, rest. I haven't found much yet, we're just scavenging for now. Once you feel better-"

"Kurochi!"

Hearing Yachiru's voice and having her rush in crashing on Tatsuki's back were all one. Tatsuki managed to stop herself from falling face first on Yemon's chest by mere inches.

"Yachiru! Be careful, he's hurt you know."

"How are you feeling Kurochi? You went all white and masky, but Blueberry saved you!"

"Thanks to the stimpacks you found for us," Tatsuki said.

"I'm fine, just really tired," Yemon said.

"Great! I brought you food! Come on, say aaaaaah..."

"What... Ungfh, whaf thif?" Yemon said with a full mouth.

"It's Iguana-on-a-stick! Best food in the wasteland! One bite will feed a hundred souls or a hungry raider! The ultimate-"

"Okay, okay, take it easy Yachiru," Tatsuki interrupted, grabbing the stick and pulling it out of Yemon's mouth. "You're going to choke him. Just chew slowly Yemon."

"Uh... It's... Surprisingly not bad," Yemon said, after gulping the mouthful.

"Of course it is!" Yachiru replied enthusiastically. "Say aaaaaah!"

Yemon spent more than a week on his back, and wasn't feeling particularly well even after he convinced Tatsuki he was ready to leave. But any illusions of having a good rest were quickly dispelled by the combination of the clock ticking as the Vault's deadline approached, and the information Tatsuki and Yachiru had unearthed.

Thanks to the Pip-boy, Yemon had managed some data recovery on the holodisks. What they had found sickened him.

The entire town was just a "breeding ground" for his Deathclaws. According to the notes, Kurotsuchi wanted to create creatures capable of surviving and thriving in the wasteland. With the Circle of Life broken, and Soul Society, Hueco Mundo, and the World of the Living collapsed into one inhospitable world, life as was known before the Cataclysm was headed for extinction. In Soul Society families were formed by free association of souls arriving from the world of the living, and in the world of the living humans "simply reproduced like rabbits". In the wasteland, however, it was somewhere in between, but most souls were not capable of having children. The attrition rate of people turning into hollows, hollows devouring other beings, and those that were eaten or merely disappeared, was much faster than the growth rate of the human souls.

_Inevitable extinction_.

Yemon disagreed. That was not happening, not as long as Vault 14 continued to exist. And even if it did, it didn't justify the horrible things Kurotsuchi was doing.

Kurotsuchi had included many references to his work in Vault 12, where he evaluated the effects of the new world in humans. He spoke of them with the same conceited detachment one could expect from someone talking about growing fungi. Even worse was what had been happening in the Boneyard, the human settlement at the top was designed to attract and keep wastelanders as a way to easily feed the Deathclaws.

Not even fungi, he talked about the people in the town like they were pet food.

Tatsuki had forbidden Yemon to read any more until he was up on his feet again. But all that had managed to do was make Yemon force himself to be up and about much faster than she had wanted.

Thus, two weeks after the deathclaw incident, they found themselves packed up and ready to go. Having thrown away the top of the Shinigami uniform he had been wearing, Yemon was down to the last change of clothes he had brought out with him. The one he had been wearing when fighting Omaeda. It had been mended and re-mended, and even so it looked ready to fall apart any minute.

And other than his knife, Tatsuki was carrying everything else.

"Tatsuki, you can't carry all that..."

"No, _you_ can't carry any of this, walking around with two broken ribs and wobbly legs. If you want to take it easy and relax until you recover, then fine, but if you're just gonna be a pain in the ass let's just go and get this over with."

Yemon sighed and distractedly tried to set his knife on his back in a more comfortable position. He still didn't know how to argue with Tatsuki. "Fine, let's go."

Yemon poked the Pip-boy and set the new destination. The Necropolis was four days due Northwest, the remains of the old Karakura town.

_And hopefully Urahara Kisuke's hideout. Still, with a name like that, this place sounds more than a bit ominous._

"You ready or what?"

Yemon and Tatsuki turned to Kenpachi, who was looking at them with his usual detached bored expression, and Yachiru was on his back, holding onto his shoulder.

"Sure, let's go," Yemon said. He cast a look around and realized many faces were following their every move as they walked along. "Can't say I'll miss this place."

"Eh, as far as shabby towns go, it wasn't bad," Kenpachi said.

"I assume you mean the fight with the deathclaws? Well, in your case _The_ Deathclaw."

"Yeah." He looked at Yemon and grinned. "Shame it wasn't a bit smarter, but I give it an A for effort. Can't say the same for you though."

"Huh?"

"If you're gonna get killed, go out with a bang. Dying because you forgot a plus was turning into a hollow is embarrassing."

Yemon felt a tingle of embarrassment creep up to his cheeks, while behind him Tatsuki stifled a laugh. "Point taken," he muttered, and turned to Tatsuki. "Are you sure you're okay with this?"

"Told you, I'm fine. There isn't much left of Karakura, but if you want to take a look go ahead."

_She's still holding something back. I wish she'd tell me._

A distant barking took his attention away. Dogmeat was barking outside the gate, looking back at the approaching party and wagging his tail. Yemon took one last look around at the town and the faces looking at them.

From the point of view of the inhabitants of the town, they had come in out of nowhere, killed everything that dared oppose them, and now were leaving. While technically they were the saviours of all the wastelanders living there, everything Yemon could see on the dirty faces following their progress could be summed up in one simple word.

_Fear_.

He shook his head and turned his attention to the task at hand.

_Once more out to the wasteland. And still no answers._

* * *

><p><strong>Author's notes: <strong>

Blackout1170: Maybe, it'll depend on whether I want to keep using it or not ;)


	20. Lost and Found

"_I must not fear.  
><em>Fear is the mind-killer.  
>Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.<br>I will face my fear.  
>I will permit it to pass over me and through me.<br>And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.  
>Where the fear has gone there will be nothing.<br>Only I will remain."

- **Bene Gesserit Litany Against Fear**, _Dune._

* * *

><p>Of all the things Yemon could have considered scary, or terrifying, an empty Vault would have never made the list. At least until that moment.<p>

The sound of his breathing was deafening in his ears, while he aimlessly rushed from door to door. Many of them were sealed, others were stuck open. But... nobody; not a soul. Nothing at all, except for a furtive sound of footsteps he was trying to chase. It seemed to come from just behind every corner he tried, and vanished in the distance before he could find its origin.

_Where the hell is everyone?_

That was the only coherent thought he could form in his head. He never thought Vault 14 would be empty.

"What's the matter boy?"

He stopped for a moment, startled. The footsteps quickly followed the voice, and soon they had vanished out of earshot. He hadn't recognized the voice, and its tone had sent a chill running up his spine.

"Who's there?" Yemon shouted.

There was no answer. He rushed to the next corridor, chasing in the direction where the voice had come, but only found empty space again.

"Look at you. You're pathetic," the voice insisted. Now it was coming from behind, and Yemon rushed back retracing his step.

"Who are you? Where's everyone?" Yemon demanded.

The voice chuckled. "Everyone? It's just me down here," the unknown voice continued, and then started singing in a ditty. "Me, and you. Sitting in a vault."

Yemon ran as fast as he could, and tripped on he didn't know what. The voice started laughing with complete abandon, and the lack of sanity the laughter betrayed sent Yemon's heart racing. Lights went out all around him, and soon he was in complete darkness.

He woke up with a vigorous shoulder shake from Tatsuki.

"Wake up Yemon, it's time to go."

Yemon sat up and looked around, trying to get his bearings. His heart was still beating fast, and for a moment he looked like he didn't recognize Tatsuki.

"What's so goddamn funny?" Yemon said.

"What?" Tatsuki said, surprised. "What's funny about what?"

Without answering, Yemon furrowed his brow and put a hand on his chest, feeling the beating of his heart and rubbing absently at his broken ribs.

"Are you okay?" Tatsuki insisted. "You've been weird since we left the Boneyard, what's wrong?"

"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine," Yemon replied, half-muttering. He stood up, and made a grimace as he felt a jolt of pain.

"Are you sure? Seriously, what's-"

"I said I'm fine!" he snapped.

Tatsuki furrowed her brow. "Jeez, someone's woken up on the wrong side of bed."

"Not much of a goddman bed," he said, and picked up his dirty blanket. He shook it vigorously, and in the process kicked up a large cloud of dust. "Last real bed I saw was in the bloody Vault."

As soon as he mentioned the Vault, he felt like someone was standing right behind him, and thought for a moment he heard the distant, distorted laughter he had inside his dream. He turned and looked frantically, but didn't find anything, or anyone.

"Yemon?" Tatsuki called, bringing him out of his reverie. He looked at her, but didn't say anything. "Seriously, talk to me."

Instead of talking, Yemon folded the blanket and placed it inside his clothes as a cushion on his ribs. With the same stony silence, he slung his oversized knife on his back, took his backpack, and left without a word.

It took Tatsuki a second or two to break out of her surprise. When she did, she took off at a good pace, caught up with Yemon, and gave him a smack on the back of the head.

"What the hell!" Yemon shouted.

"You could at least tell me! What am I, chopped liver?"

"Like you're one to talk!"

"Me? What now?"

"Yes you, what's in Karakura Town? Huh?"

"Nothing!" Tatsuki shouted back, making a frustrated gesture with her arms. "I already told you!"

"Like hell! Y-"

Yemon and Tatsuki were interrupted by loud barking, and in perfect unison, they turned towards Dogmeat, and yelled "what!" as a single voice. The dog stopped barking, looked at them, tucked his ears back and, lowering his head with a single disappointed whine, turned around and fled towards Yachiru.

"Wha- Dammit, wait Dogmeat!" Yemon called, but the dog ignored him. In the meantime, Yachiru greeted him with great enthusiasm, and a moment later they were both rolling on the ground, in a mix of giggles and happy barking. "Dammit, I can't believe I yelled at Dogmeat like that."

"But it's okay to yell at me?"

Yemon looked at Tatsuki out of the corner of his eye. She wasn't smiling, and neither was he, but he was sure both were on the verge of it. He shook his head and sighed. "You do yell back at least."

"Damn straight I do!" She waited for a few moments, and prompted Yemon again. "So?"

"I don't know," he muttered, and pressed with two fingers over his eyes. "I just can't sleep well at all."

"I noticed that. Why did you ask me what I found funny when you woke up?"

"I... I don't know, you weren't laughing?" He looked at Tatsuki, who shook her head. "I must've been dreaming it then. I can't remember what I was dreaming. It was something to do with the Vault, and it sucked, but..."

Tatsuki rapped her knuckles on Yemon's head, but with no power or intention to hurt him. "Don't go telling me it's some sort of bad omen or some shit like that."

"Maybe."

"Bullshit. If you believe in crap like that you'll end up making it happen yourself. We still have time, so let's get your Vault sorted and be done with it."

Tatsuki smirked, shouldered her railway rifle, and took off after Yachiru. Yemon watched her walk away for a few moments before chasing her, all the while thinking the same thing over and over.

_I won't let that happen to our Vault._

And he felt almost like a part of him was amused at the thought, even though he didn't find it funny _at all._

They reached the outskirts of the Necropolis shortly after noon. The ruins of Karakura Town were at the bottom of a series of gently sloping hills, and from the top the contour of the city could be easily made. There was nothing standing taller than a foot, except for a group of dilapidated buildings around the geographical center of the ruins, and what appeared to be the base of what must had been four enormous pillars, or towers of some sort.

"Ugh," Yemon grunted, looking alternatively at the ruins and his Pip-boy. "This place's huge, how are we going to find Urahara's base? I should've taken the old map..."

"What are you, stupid?" Tatsuki said. Yemon turned to her with some surprise at her low, grating voice. "I lived in Karakura Town since the day I was born." She started walking down the hill as she talked. "I could guide you through it even if you gouged my eyes out."

_G-Gouged her eyes out? What on earth is she on about?_

Tatsuki gritted her teeth as she walked on, closing her eyes. She didn't need them to see her way down, she had walked those hills plenty of times before.

_That son of a bitch isn't around anyway, _she thought. The image of Ichimaru Gin slashing at her left eye became more vivid in her head, and she opened right eye, pressing with her hand on her left. Next time she had seen him, all that was left of him was a smear on the pavement right by Orihime. She didn't know if it had been Ichigo, but it didn't matter.

"Tatsuki!"

"Ah, what?" She looked up, and saw Yemon looking at her.

"Are you okay?"

"What? Don't start again, I'm fine! What is it?"

"Do you know where we're going?"

She stopped and, freeing her left eye, looked around. She felt an odd sense of displacement, she saw nothing but faint traces of what the old town had been, but her mind filled the empty spaces in her head with all the things and places she knew had existed a hundred years ago.

"It's over there." She pointed at the surviving buildings. "Urahara had a thrifty little shop there."

Yemon put a hand over his eyes to give them some shade, and blinked under the glare looking in the direction Tatsuki was pointing. "A shop? What did he sell?"

"Candy, if you can believe it. He had all sorts of weird shit for Shinigami too, but for the rest of us, crappy candy and expired sweets."

Yemon looked at Tatsuki and smirked. "Sounds like there's a story there."

"A few," Tatsuki smiled back. "Your great grandaunt used to go there all the time to get cheap candy too, you know. There was a boy in the shop that had a massive crush on her."

"Uh, I see."

"Yeah, um..." Tatsuki hesitated, and put a hand on her forehead. "Uh... shit."

"What?"

"I can't believe this. You fucking idiot, how could you forget Ichigo's sister's name?"

Yemon mouthed a wordless 'oh', and he himself dug through his brain trying to remember. "Uh... What was it... I think Gran-gran told me once..."

"You don't know? She's Karin's sister!"

"Well, she didn't make it to the Vault, so..."

Tatsuki looked at Yemon, who hadn't even noticed as he tried to remember the name, and after a few moments looked down to the ground.

_It's been a hundred years, it's not like she'd still be alive... Karin is, though. Dammit, I can see her face but can't remember-_

"Was it Yuzu?" Yemon said, interrupting her thoughts.

"Yes!" Tatsuki shouted, with obvious relief. "That's right! Yuzu! Ah, sweet dependable Yuzu, I can't believe-"

"What are you doing?"

Yemon jumped on the spot, and his heart went racing, when Yachiru sneaked up on him to ask the question mere inches behind his ear. "Bloody hell Yachiru!"

She smiled widely. "Hee-hee. Are we here yet?"

"Uh, yes, over there apparently," Yemon said, pointing ahead. "Why...? Oh, right."

A moment later he had dug out the bag of cookies, and fed Yachiru two of them. He looked at the bag, sighed, and offered it to Tatsuki. "May as well finish them off."

Tatsuki raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Jeez, they've lasted you long enough." She dug into the bag, and picked one.

"Yeah, well, I just don't want to be left only with one and everyone be too polite to finish them."

He offered the bag to Kenpachi, who looked rather amused. "I don't think that'd be a problem," he said, taking one and gesturing with his head at Yachiru.

Yemon took the last one and, as he put the now empty cloth bag back in his backpack, noticed Dogmeat giving him a sad, pleading look.

"You too? Come on, you're a dog. You like these things?" Yemon said. Dogmeat whined. A moment later, Yemon sighed and split his cookie in half. "I'm just spoiling you rotten, aren't I? Well," he continued, after dogmeat made short work of the sweet treat, "I guess I owed you an apology, huh?"

The mutt barked and wagged his tail. He looked at Tatsuki, who didn't seem too impressed.

"What's that? I'm not going to apologize! I don't care how much you bark!" Tatsuki seemed to be daring Dogmeat to keep barking, and Yemon could tell there was a smile trying to break through her lips. "Why you little – come here!"

Dogmeat yelped while Tatsuki pushed her gun at Yemon, dropped the bag of ammo, and took off after the mutt yelling for him to wait. Yachiru squeaked in delight, and took off after the two as well.

Yemon looked at the scene and shook his head. "You've been very quiet today," he said, looking at Kenpachi.

The former Captain shrugged. "Ain't much to talk about."

"I thought you'd be looking forward to get to his place, if what Ise-san said about this being a magnet for trouble is true."

"Eh, the woman says there ain't anything there." He gestured at Tatsuki with his head. "And she's been there she says."

"That's true..." Yemon muttered, looking at Tatsuki and pondering.

It took almost two hours to get close enough to the buildings, and Yemon suffered quite a bit under the wasteland sun with no shade or refuge to hide from it. There was a group of people by the nearest building, with a bunch of tents arranged inside a protective circle.

"Caravan," Tatsuki said. Yemon looked ahead squinting as hard as he could. "You can't see a damn thing, can you?"

"Eh, I'm getting used to it."

"To the sun, or to not seeing anything?"

Yemon laughed. "Yes," he added with a smirk. "But does that mean it's inhabited?"

"Seems like it."

Yemon furrowed his brow. "That doesn't make any sense. Didn't Ise-san say this place was a bad place and they didn't want to come here?" Yemon asked. Tatsuki didn't answer, so he continued. "Are we in the right place?"

"Of course we're in the right place, dumbass!" she snapped.

"Then I don't get it."

"Maybe they got a problem solver."

When she said that, both of them turned to Kenpachi. He looked at them and shrugged. "Don't look at me, never been 'ere before."

As usual, they were spotted by the guards long before they were close, but the latter didn't do much other than follow their advance. The merchants were more forthcoming, and a few of them shouted their wares as they passed.

Out of habit, Yemon lingered back to see what the merchants had to offer, and on the third stall he found some old steam assemblies and compact machinery that wouldn't have been out of place inside a vault. While he browsed, a low, raspy voice interrupted his search.

"How much for this one?"

"Eighty caps, the coil is in great condition. Twenty more caps and I'll throw a fission battery in!"

"No, don't need the battery."

Yemon turned to follow the exchange, and couldn't stop a gasp from escaping his lips after what he saw. The person next to him looked hideously deformed, with cracked and missing skin over redenning wide sores, missing nose and ears, and all the outward appearance of having, for lack of a better word, _melted_ down. He was reminded of the ghouls he had fought with Dogmeat and Tatsuki. Yet he was acting perfectly normal, and was dressed in casual clothes (_as casual as anything can be in the wasteland I guess_), and even wore an old and silly looking top hat.

"Whatcha looking at smoothskin?"

_Oh shit_. "Sorry, didn't meant to stare."

"Really, 'Coz looked like you were starin' all right, got a problem?"

"No, no, no problem, everything's fine."

The ghoul turned and gave Yemon a push, hitting him right on the wounded ribs. Yemon's yelp of pain seemed to amuse the ghoul. "Everything's fine. Fine way to stare at me, you l-"

"Hey!" The ghoul turned and found himself staring down at a very cross-looking Tatsuki. "What's your fucking problem?"

"Fuck off little girl, don't-"

The ghoul had tried to slap Tatsuki as he talked, but instead he found himself whizzing at thin air. Tatsuki had ducked under the blow, and immediately countered with an uppercut that caught her foe square on the jaw. There was a disturbingly loud cracking noise, and the ghoul fell back like a sack of rocks.

The guards and the merchant shouted in protest, but before it escalated further, Tatsuki cut it short in a loud voice. "Hey! He's the one who started the fight!" Then she smirked, and added: "I merely finished it." She looked at her clenched fist and the brass knuckles she was wielding, and mumbled "aw yeah" before taking them off.

The murmur of the guards muttering to each other didn't die down. The merchant, mean while, leaned over to see if he could still make a sale. "Maybe it's a good chance after all," he said to himself.

Tatsuki picked up her bag and gun, and walked over to Yemon, who was rubbing at his chest with a gesture of pain. "Making friends I see."

"Give me a break, that guy was spoiling for a fight."

"Yeah," the merchant replied, shaking his head at the sadly unconscious ghoul. "Touchy lot these chaps here, don't like people very much. Can't blame 'em tho, not many people like 'em too."

"Oh he'll remember that I'm sure. Come on," Tatsuki gestured at Yemon, "let's get going."

"Goin' into the Necropolis? Careful in there, been hearin' they don't take well to smoothskins."

"Ah, I don't think there's much to worry," Tatsuki replied, shouldered her rifle, and walked off with all the aplomb she was capable of.

Yemon followed still nursing his chest. "You look like you enjoyed that."

"Just checking that these work properly," she replied, patting the pocket where she kept her brass knuckles.

"How can they work improperly?" Yemon said, not expecting an answer. "Okay, which way?"

They caught up with Kenpachi, Yachiru, and Dogmeat, while Tatsuki looked around at the buildings. Many pairs of eyes followed their advance, and Yemon was somewhat surprised at the number of ghouls that were in the few standing ruins. He tried to avoid staring at them, even as he felt a great deal of hatred behind those gazes.

Tatsuki led them down a wide street, took a detour, a couple of turns, and after spending a few seconds at an intersection, she nodded to herself when she spotted an old street nameplate.

"Right, it's behind that building. Well, that pile of rubble."

Yemon looked around, and back at Yachiru, who had taken off some time ago to "explore" the ruins, and was now digging through the rubble somewhere behind them, with Dogmeat in tow. Kenpachi, in the meantime, decided to find a seat and lay back to relax.

"Well," Yemon said, turning to Tatsuki, "time to check it out. You coming too?"

"Eh, sure, but as I said-"

"Yeah, not going to find anything." They started walking off. "But I have to say, you were right about there not being much left of Karakura town."

"Yeah, well, after all that's happened here, are you surprised?"

"Guess not. Huh, that little shack over there?" Yemon said, following where Tatsuki was pointing. A wooden two-storied house with rotten walls and barely any tiles left on the roof. On the ground were the remains of a large sign, which used to read "浦原商店".

"Yeah. I'm surprised so much of it is standing."

"As long as there's an entrance to this Vault Ise-san mentioned... Do you know where-"

"Hey!" a rough voice interrputed their conversation as they stepped at the door of the shop. "You not look like ghoul. How come?"

They had both recognized the kind of voice. Inside was large super-mutant, with a greyish skin, a mask covering all his face except for his mouth, which had no lips and very dirty irregular teeth. He had _something_ rather large on his back too.

Tatsuki had frozen in place, but her arm holding her railway rifle was trembling quite noticeably.

"No, no, we're not ghouls," Yemon said, speaking quickly after he spotted another three super-mutants behind that one, all three armed with rifles. He was stalling for time, trying to frantically think of a way to take cover quick. Hyrenkyaku was his best bet, but those four felt strong, and there was a chance they were fast enough to follow him.

"Hah! Harry knew! Mistress say normals brought to Master, you come now!"

The super-mutants behind Harry moved towards them. Tatsuki brought down her rifle from her shoulder and grabbed it with both hands. And in the meantime Yemon desperately tried to come up with a way to stop the fight.

"Mist- wait, normal? No, no, we're not normals!"

The super mutants stopped; so did Tatsuki, who was looking at Yemon like she had no idea what he was doing.

"Wha, Harry confused. You not-ghoul, you not-normal, what are you?"

"Uh... We're... Robots, actually. Very advanced robots. Can't you tell?"

"Hah! No! Harry seen robots, they's shiny and flat! Harry angry now!"

The super-mutant reached back and pulled something out Yemon didn't waste time trying to see. He grabbed Tatsuki and disappeared in a blur, pushing forward with Hyrenkyaku. A mere instant later and they'd both have been engulfed by a spray of the flamethrower Harry was carrying.

"Shit!" Tatsuki shouted. "My gun!"

Yemon didn't stop, he made a second jump and stopped only when he found a spot they could use to take cover. Gunfire from the super-mutants was already falling around them. Tatsuky ducked and dragged Yemon with her to the ground.

"Damn, I dropped the rifle!" she complained, pulling her 10mm automatic out. "Seriously, what the hell was that Yemon?"

"Give me a break!" he said, ducking again as a few bullets landed dangerously close to him. "I couldn't think of anything!"

"Fine. Can you get the high ground?" Tatsuki looked carefully from behind the rubble she was using as cover. "Let's split their bullets, I think they'll coming soon."

"I'll try. Wait for-"

A sudden, tremendous blast stopped Yemon mid-sentence, and Tatsuki quickly took cover when a large fireball blasted everything around the shop, sending burning splinters and pieces of the old, decrepit building flying all over a large radius. There were cries of pain from the super-mutants as well, but no more bullets came.

When Tatsuki and Yemon dared a look from behind cover, they were shocked by what they saw. The blast had cleared damn near everything, and there was only smoking pieces of wrekage and smoking bodies of super-mutants left. In the middle of it all, with a massive grin on her face, was the pink-haired Shinigami they knew well.

"Bloody hell, Yachiru!" Yemon called.

"Did you see that?" she shouted back, making small jumps of excitement in place. "That was the biggest boom I've ever done!"

From the distance, Yemon saw her put something inside her bag of explosives, and deduced it to be a grenade pin, as usual. "Well that makes sense."

"What does?"

"The explosion. I think she put a grenade on the bastard with the flame-thrower."

"Ah. Oooooh, right. Holy crap, you think she did it on purpose?"

"Beats me, but she's saved our asses again."

"That she did." Tatsuki sighed. "I hope the railway rifle survived," she said, walking off to look for her gun.

Kenpachi's stopped Yemon from following. "What the hell are you guys doing?"

"Ah, Kenpachi," Yemon said. "No, nothing, just Yachiru having some fun with some super-mutants..."

"Right. Yachiru! Don't be so loud next time! I was about to take a nap!"

"Ken-chan! Did you see that? It was the biggest boom ever!"

"Who'd miss it?"

Yemon smiled as he looked around, but soon realized Dogmeat was nowhere to be found. "Hey Yachiru, where's Dogmeat?"

"He's over there! Oh... He _was_ over there. Doggieeeee! Where are youuuuuu?"

Yemon traced back Yachiru's steps in the direction she was pointed. Soon he found the grey mutt, hiding under a large slab of concrete and looking rather unhappy. "What's wrong buddy?"

Dogmeat whined, with his ears tucked back.

"Explosion scared you? Come on, it wasn't so bad, was it?"

The mutt let himself be coaxed out of his hiding place, and followed Yemon towards the remains of the shop. Tatsuki was having some heated words with Yachiru, pointing at what appeared to be the scarred remains of her railway rifle, while Yachiru was just laughing.

"It's completely ruined!" Tatsuki yelled for the third time.

"What's the matter Tatsuki?" Yemon interrupted.

"Kurochi!" Yachiru said, getting a word in before Tatsuki could. "Did you see that? It was great!"

"No kidding. You put a grenade on the guy with the flamethrower, didn't you?"

"I did the what now?"

"Didn't you notice, one of them had this huge tank on his back, and was shooting fire..."

"Oh yeah! I was expecting him to go _splat_, but he went all _whoosh_, and then _boom!_"

"Yeah, that was the flamethrower. He had a tank full of petrol or alcohol or something. Very explosive stuff."

"Wooooow, I'll have to try again!"

"Just be careful," Yemon said, and looked at her up and down. "Or next time you'll burn more than your clothes."

Yachiru looked down at herself, and realized her old Shinigami uniform had been singed in several places. She opened her mouth as if to say 'oh', but didn't actually speak the word.

"Yemon, can you take a look?" Tatsuki asked, offering him the railway rifle.

"Uh, lemme see..." He spent a few seconds examining it, but was quickly satisfied. "It's mostly the cables burned off, see?" He pointed at the melted rubber coating. "And the pressure cooker is all dented, so it's not closing properly. I'll probably be able to fix it a bit, but we should be looking for a replacement soon." He looked at Tatsuki, who had her eyes fixed on the gun with a very bummed out face. "Aw, don't look at it like that. I can make another if we find the parts."

"Promise?"

"Of course!" He laughed. "Now, let's see if I can find the entrance to the Vault. You know where it is?"

Tatsuki shook her head, taking the rifle from Yemon's hands.

"Okay, I'll look then. Want to help me buddy?" Yemon looked at Dogmeat, who raised his head as if asking his master what he wanted. "See if you can find some underground entrance, or a cellar, or a passage or something. Like a big hole in the ground."

Dogmeat barked and took off, sniffing around on the ground. Yemon went off towards the spot where the Urahara shop used to be, and soon was digging through the burned remains.

Tatsuki looked at them and shook her head. "That dog is really bloody scary."

Yemon's search had started with good spirits. He left no stone unturned, hitting the ground every time he cleared enough rubble to get to the very floor, always looking for that tell-tale hollow sound. After a few hours digging out rubble he was very tired but still positive. By nightfall, he was more than a bit annoyed, searching with the Pip-boy light and cursing repeatedly every time his tired arms had to lift yet another rock or beam to look underneath for entrances.

After the initial explosion, a crowd of ghoul inhabitants had gathered around the place, looking with distrustful eyes at the progress made by the Vault Dweller. Then boredom set, most of the crowd left, and all they had was the occasional onlooker who'd come, take a look at the proceedings, and leave with a shake of the head and some mumbled words about insane smoothskins.

Night turned into morning. The sun rose between the ruined remains of the buildings, and still Yemon continued his fruitless search. He dragged his feet as he walked, and could barely lift his arms anymore.

Not even Dogmeat had continued the search. He had laid down with the rest of the party, looking at Yemon work but not willing to continue the search.

"Come on, give it a rest already Yemon, it's morning!" Tatsuki called when she woke up.

"Fuck's sake! It can't be so bloody well hidden!" Yemon retorted.

By noon, Yemon was laying on the ground, under the shade of the nearby ruins, after throwing up breakfast and almost passing out of heat and exhaustion.

"You're really living up to your family name in stubbornness," Tatsuki said, speaking in a low voice while she fed Yemon a few more sips of water.

"You sure... you don't know... where..."

"And that makes eight times you've asked. No. You know, it may very well not be there."

"I thought you knew..."

"Seriously, it's been like a hundred years, and all kinds of crap have happened. It probably has collapsed or something."

"But if it had... collapsed... It didn't look like," Yemon muttered, speaking with tired difficulty.

"What? This place's a mess, does it look intact to you?"

"But..."

"Enough buts already! Just rest, you're going to drive yourself crazy, and me as well!"

She passed a wet rag over Yemon's forehead. He closed his eyes, and gratefully enjoyed the cooling sensation. He was too tired to think, and nothing made any sense. Tiredness got the best of him, and he fell asleep.

It wasn't a restful sleep. Empty vaults, nothingness, laughter. And the voice again just as he woke up. Mockingly making the sound of the clock he had been racing against since the day he left Vault 14.

_**Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Tick, tock.**_

"Shut up!"

Yemon's sudden yell grabbed everyone's attention. It was late afternoon, and all four of his companions were around a small campfire not far from where he had been resting. They certainly didn't lack fuel for it, there was a pile of half-burned wood from Yachiru's previous day's display. Tatsuki and Kenpachi were sitting down by the flames, while Yachiru and Dogmeat were playing tug-of-war with a rope or something Yemon couldn't distinguish.

"What's wrong? Bad dreams again?" Tatsuki said.

Yemon looked at her, and for a moment it seemed as if he didn't recognize her. He started rubbing his chest again. "Yeah. Maybe. Dunno, whatever." He stood up, took a moment to steady himself, and started walking off towards the demolished shop.

"For fuck's sake Yemon! Stop it already! Let's go back and ask Ise-san for help, there's nothing here!"

"No, there has to be. This is Urahara's place. It has to be here." Yemon stopped and looked around. When he spotted his backpack, he turned and went to it, rummaging through until he found Urahara's notebook. "It has to be. Maybe it says here."

"Are you listening to yourself?"

"What's the problem kid?" Kenpachi interrupted. "There ain't anything there, you've been searching for a whole day."

"It can't be, if Urahara had a Vault under his shop, it should be there. Even if it collapsed, there should be an entrance or something. Where else could he have hidden it?" He turned his attention to the notebook, mumbling as he read through. "Twelfth division... Some bollocks about a giant Senkaimon... Bah, don't care about the divisions, what else..."

When he said _Senkaimon, _Kenpachi's attention seemed to perk up, and he looked up while he worked his brain. After a few minutes of Yemon muttering, he suddenly talked. "Well shit, that makes sense."

"Uh? What does?" Yemon said, looking up from the notebook.

"That, the _Senkaimon. _This ain't Karakura town."

"What?" Yemon blurted out in surprise.

"The hell, of course it's Karakura town!" Tatsuki shouted. "You think I don't know my own city?"

"Nah, those bigass pillars. I remember now."

"Oh shut up!" Tatsuki shouted again. "Don't be-"

"The old man made us do all kinds of crap to prepare for the battle with Aizen," Kenpachi continued, ignoring Tatsuki. "He had the 12th Division build a replica of Karakura town before the battle. This-"

Tatsuki jumped up to her feet with her railway rifle in hand. "I SAID SHUT UP!" She shouted at the top of her lungs, pointing the rifle at Kenpachi.

"What the fuck? Tatsuki!" Yemon shouted, standing up too.

Kenpachi didn't react, he only threw a sideglance at Tatsuki. She felt her blood freeze in her veins, and suddenly could barely breathe. Nonetheless, she kept her rifle pointed at Kenpachi's head.

"Tatsuki," Yemon said, speaking in a calmer tone. "You can't shoot the rifle, remember?"

She opened her eyes wide in surprise and dropped the rifle, only to immediately reach for her handgun. Before she could, Yemon rushed to her and tried to restrain her arms.

"Stop that! What's wrong with you?"

"Yemon, don't listen to-"

"TATSUKI!" Yemon's sudden outburst stopped Tatsuki's struggle. When she turned to him, he realized she looked scared. Very scared. "What's wrong?"

"This... This..."

"This isn't Karakura town."

Yemon had finished the phrase for her, so she only nodded.

"And you knew."

She nodded again, looking away from Yemon. The fight had left her completely. Yemon let her go, and she sat down, or more like fell on her butt when her legs gave.

"And how the hell can you pull a gun on one of us?"

"Sorry," she mumbled.

Yemon puffed once, and sat down next to her, facing Kenpachi. The large man didn't look like it had bothered him one bit. Going by the look he was giving Tatsuki, he appeared to just think of it as something silly.

"Sorry about that Kenpachi," Yemon said.

The shinigami shrugged. "As I was saying, the 12th made a replica of the town, so that there could be a fight without killing everyone. Saw the pillars and didn't think of it, but yeah, this is the replica, they exchanged places with that giant _Senkaimon _Urahara prepared."

Yemon looked at Tatsuki, who still refused to look up. "And you know where the real Karakura is, don't you."

She shook her head.

"Tatsuki, at least don't lie. What's wrong with it?"

She took her time to respond, and did so only reluctantly. "You can't go there. Lots of bombs fell there. Too much radiation. Those that know it call it The Glow. It's very bad. If you go there you'll die."

"That's it? Radiation?"

"Too much-"

"Like that matters! They had some radiation suits at the caravan, you know."

"Just get some Rad-X," Kenpachi said. "Those pills, you take them, and no more radiation till they come the other end."

"That doesn't work on us, it's for spirits," Tatsuki said. She looked up at last, and turned to Yemon with a pleading look on her face. "You'll die if you go, I can't let you go."

"Well, maybe. As long as I can make it there and look at the Vault, doesn't matter."

"No, you can't! Please listen to-"

"All right! I believe you, but I'm going anyway. A radiation suit, some of that Rad-X, if I can make it out with the chip it's fine."

"Goddamit Yemon, that thing's gonna kill you!"

Yemon didn't reply, and almost immediately Tatsuki's face opened up in surprise as she put a hand on her mouth, just becoming aware of what she had just said.

"What _thing_?" Yemon asked.

Tatsuki shot a glance at Kenpachi, who appeared to be more interested in the conversation now.

"What thing?" Yemon insisted.

"There's something there. And... And you can't kill it." She turned to Yemon, and talked as if she was literally begging now. "Noone can kill it. Just... Just don't go there. Let's go back to Ise-san, or somewhere else. I'll help you look, remember?"

It was Kenpachi who answered. "Nothing can kill it you say?"

"You have a deathwish?" Tatsuki shot a venomous glance at Kenpachi. "Fine, go get yourself killed. But don't drag us with you."

"You silly Blueberry!" The voice of Yachiru came from behind Tatsuki, and startled her to the point of letting out an involuntary yelp when she jumped at her to give her a hug from behind. "Ken-chan is the strongest!"

"Yachiru! Friggin' hell, don't startle me like that!"

Yemon laughed, together with Yachiru, but quickly sobered up and looked at Tatsuki dead in the eye. "Seriously. But you know, I knew this would be dangerous anyway. So I'm going with Kenpachi."

"B-"

"So!" He interrupted Tatsuki. "Can you do me a favour instead?"

"What?"

"If I don't make it back, please go back to the Vault and tell them. Gran-gran may have some idea of what to do if that happens."

Tatsuki opened her mouth to complain once, then closed it and tried again, but didn't manage a word.

"Thanks. So, where is the real Karakura town?" Yemon said, flicking the Pip-boy to map mode and reaching out with his arm towards Tatsuki.

Tatsuki reached out too, and swatted Yemon's hand. "You idiot! You think I'll let you go alone?"

Yemon raised his eyebrows. "But-"

"No buts, shut up! You think you can just ask me to go tell Karin you're dead?"

"I-"

"I said shut up! Goddamit Yemon, when we're done here, you owe me a fucking drink, you hear me?"

"I hear you." He smirked.

"Yahoo, Blueberry is the best!" Yachiru said, prompting Tatsuki to look at the mass of giggles and pink hair resting her chin on her shoulder.

After a few seconds, Yemon tried again. "So... Um... _Where_ is it?"

Tatsuki didn't say anything. She gestured Yemon to show her the Pip-boy and, after examining the map carefully, added a marker on it. It was placed right in the center of the circle made by Shady Sands, Junktown, the Hub, the Boneyard, the Necropolis, and the spot where that bald Shinigami from the Brotherhood of Steel had claimed their base was.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>It's been a while! As it turns out, this year's Camp NaNoWriMo has changed format, and instead of July+August, it's now June+August. So I was quite busy writing during June! Finally retaking the story, and hoping to bang out chapters in a more regular fashion (though I do have August Camp NaNoWriMo in my sights).

Regarding the plot twist, pat yourself on the back if you saw it coming! The plot no longer thickens, we're coming to the unraveling parts. Well, mostly :)


	21. Haunting Ghosts

"I'm not afraid of death. It's the stake one puts up in order to play the game of life."

- **Jean Giraudoux**, _Amphitryon._

* * *

><p>Ever since she left the Necropolis, Tatsuki had been obsessing over her railway rifle to an almost absurd extent. It was the fourth day of travel, two until they reached their destination.<p>

"Tatsuki, stop that. Come on, eat something," Yemon said.

The smell of the freshly roasted bighorner caught her attention. Yemon was offering her a bone-in slice of the large animal. Kenpachi had skewered and roasted it over the open fire, and he had done it so fast and easily that Tatsuki couldn't help thinking he probably had a lot of practice.

She looked at the roasted beast and furrowed her brow. It had taken her far too many shots to down the animal, which didn't speak well of the state of her weapon. She sighed and took Yemon's offering. "Thanks."

"I told you I'll make you another one once we find a pressure cooker."

"I know, I know. Bah, it's stupid anyway."

"What is?"

She bit on the meat and took her time munching before answering. "If it comes down to this gun, we're fucked. Even if it was working perfectly."

Yemon followed Tatsuki's eyes and looked at Kenpachi. He was holding onto a bone and eating calmly, while Yachiru was munching with two full cheeks and a huge smile. She was holding onto a slice of roasted ribs that was bigger than her head.

"You don't think he can pull it off."

It wasn't a question.

"I don't know." She sighed. "I really don't."

It was a hearty meal, and even Dogmeat didn't manage to finish his portion. He fell asleep with a half-eaten bone between his paws, the perfect picture of canine bliss. Not far from him, Yemon was laying down looking at the stars, his feet close to the dying embers of the camp fire and with Tatsuki resting her head on his belly. He hadn't been sleeping well himself, but she had been even worse, ever since they decided to visit the _real_ Karakura Town.

_She said I was always reaching out when I was sleeping. Jeez, that was embarrassing, that morning with the caravan. Still, it's nice not to be alone in this place._

Yemon smirked. He wasn't sleepy at all, an odd feeling he couldn't shake was keeping him awake. Something was about to happen. Maybe he was only hoping for it. Maybe it was a bad omen, just like Tatsuki had said.

Absently, he rubbed his wounded ribs. He was feeling better, but he knew it'd still be a few weeks before they were completely healed.

_Not that I'll have a chance to rest and let them heal. Oh well._

The weight of Tatsuki's head on his stomach felt heavier than he thought it would. He looked down at her, pulled the blanket up to cover her properly, and laid back again to look at the stars. At the edge of his vision, the sky was beginning to clear. It wouldn't be long until sunrise.

He raised his left hand to the sky, open and outstretching his fingers. There was no colour that morning, not yet at least. The light of the outside world was so much more vibrant than anything they had inside the vault he thought it was almost enough to make up for the rest of the wasteland. He looked at his Pip-boy, glowing faintly grey. The background radiation had been increasing as they had walked towards Karakura Town, very slowly but steadily. It was not worrying yet, but he expected to break out the radiation suits and Rad-X before the end of the next day.

His pulse increased, and so did the sinking, heavy feeling of Tatsuki's head on his stomach.

_Wait a goddamn minute. The light of this thing is green! What is-_

The strange voice that had been chasing him since the Boneyard interrupted his thought with a snigger.

**_Heads up, partner._**

The pressure had grown so much he could recognize it was reiatsu. He shot up just as Tatsuki did, jolted out of sleep and standing even before she knew what was happening. Yemon scrambled to his feet, Dogmeat and Tatsuki were dragging themselves out of sleep, but Kenpachi and Yachiru looked like they had been waiting for this all along.

"It's coming!" Yemon shouted, managing to get Tatsuki's attention. She looked at him, nodded, and didn't add a single word.

The pressure kept increasing. It was absolutely suffocating, and worst of all, Yemon had no idea what could be producing it. It didn't feel like a Shinigami, or a hollow, or anything in between. He had his eyes glued in the distance, looking towards the Eastern horizon where the pressure was coming from. He couldn't see anything, only the light starting to raise beyond the skyline.

The Pip-boy started croaking. Yemon looked at it, and saw the spiripar counter needle raising. And with it, so did the Geiger counter.

"Shit," he muttered.

It fell like a meteor from the sky. The blast of wind, debris, and reiatsu knocked Yemon and Tatsuki off their feet. He stood back up quickly, peering through the darkness and trying to make out what the devilish thing was. A part of him didn't even want to know. Tatsuki didn't stand up. She only stood to be on her knees, wrapping her arms around her stomach. Yemon walked to her side and knelt by her.

"What's wr-" He stopped. It was an incredibly stupid question at that time. "Is that thing..."

He let the question hang, and Tatsuki nodded without looking up. Finally, the vaguely humanoid figure in the centre of the crash could be made. It looked like a human with a huge pair of wings, or something like that at least. They were torn and ragged, and the one on the right looked as if it was missing a very sizeable chunk too. Yemon saw what appeared to be skulls attached to the ends of the wings as well.

_That's ridiculous. Shit, what the hell is that thing?_

The uneasy step and irregular shape made Yemon think that the thing had to be badly wounded, or had been at some point. He tried to make out the face, but it looked just like a black hole of nothingness. A flat, black face with a huge lipless mouth, ugly and distorted as it was the rest of its body. The ugly shape, the ragged down wings and flesh, it looked like one of the humanoid ghouls they had come across. Only uglier, nastier, and unbelievably strong. Just looking at him, Yemon felt like his very soul was going to be torn to pieces.

**_Come on partner, don't be such a wuss._**

For a moment Yemon had the distinct impression that the monster was looking at him. _Very_ intently.

Kenpachi's voice interrupted the moment, much to Yemon's relief.

"Eyes on me!" he shouted, appearing right on top of the monster and swinging down with all his might. As if nothing was happening, his opponent raised its right arm, and blocked Kenpachi's swing with its bony, claw-like hand. There was a bang as their reiatsus clashed, rushing up in the sky like a spiral, one yellow and sharp, the other white and death-like.

Shielding his eyes with his left arm, Yemon tried to peek over through the blast of air that surrounded the fight, but couldn't see a thing under the glowing ball of dust.

"Shit, why is it here? Why?" Tatsuki grated through clenched teeth.

"Where's Yachiru?" Yemon asked loudly as Tatsuki stood up again. "Are you better? What-"

"Doesn't matter!"

After a few seconds that felt like years, the clashing of reiatsus subsided and the dust started to settle down. Kenpachi was standing right next to the beast, who was still holding his Zanpakutō as before.

"Zaraki Kenpachi," the beast said, speaking with a low and ghoul-like, raspy voice.

"Hoooh, you can talk and everything," the Shinigami replied with a grin."So you know who I am. Got a name?"

Without saying another word, the beast pulled Kenpachi's sword towards itself with a sudden move, and made a quick swipe with its other claw, catching Kenpachi on the chest and both drawing blood and sending him flying to the side. The crash on the ground was extremely powerful, and kicked up rocks and dust through its trajectory for several meters.

"I don't have time for you." It turned towards Yemon and Tatsuki, and gave them a look that could only be described as _hungry_. "I have so much work to do."

It was Yemon who got his bearings first. He looked around and saw Yachiru standing on a rock not far from where they were, looking at the battle. It was too dark for him to make out if she was reacting at all. Dogmeat growling next to him brought his attention back.

"W-Who are you?" Yemon said, in a voice that trembled too much for his liking.

Next to him, Tatsuki brought her trembling railway rifle up.

"Yes, you wouldn't know who I am. But I know who you are. As if I had kept my eye on you, for the last one hundred years." He paused dramatically, taking another step towards them. "Kurosaki."

Yemon's surprise would have likely been much worse if Tatsuki hadn't chosen that moment to open fire. She fired spike after spike in quick succession, only to have them knocked off the air by the beast. Soon she was empty, and hadn't managed to score a single hit.

"Who the hell are you?" Yemon shouted.

"Perhaps... the name I was once known for. You may have heard it before. Sōsuke Aizen."

Tatsuki dropped her rifle and fumbled trying to get her gun out, with trembling hands and breathing heavily. Yemon was frozen on the spot. Only Dogmeat appeared ready to fight, inching slowly towards Aizen with an ever louder growl. Yemon didn't hear him, or the increasing croaking of his Pip-boy as Aizen too drew closer.

"It can't be..." Yemon muttered.

"How amusing. After all my careful preparation, when I built the King's Key, I came up a mere two souls short. Strong souls, souls with spiritual power I could use. For a hundred years I counted and recounted them in my head, even with the ones that escaped too far from Karakura Town, even without them I had all the souls I needed. But it was two short. And now, finally! That the last two souls I'd sacrifice, one would belong to-"

He never finished the phrase. He raised his left arm to block a slice from Kenpachi, and was immediately sent flying away by a kick on the stomach.

"Kenpachi!" Yemon shouted.

"Sorry pal," Kenpachi said, looking in the direction Aizen had been sent flying. "Ya can't have him, I'm the one that's gonna kill him."

"W-What?"

Kenpachi turned to the suddenly blanched Yemon. "I never got to have a second fight with Ichigo. Ya'll have to do," he said, and grinned. A moment later he appeared in front of Yemon and Tatsuki, grabbed them by their collars, and without so much as a '_by your leave_', threw them away towards where Yachiru was standing.

Yemon reacted in time to grab Tatsuki and manage a decent landing with Hyrenkyaku. "What the hell are you-" He was interrupted by Dogmeat's landing, and was forced to catch the mutt before he crashed. "Oi! Kenpachi!"

"Stay out of the way!" he said, giving his back to them and walking towards Aizen.

"Come on Kurochi, I told you Ken-chan doesn't like it when people butt into his fights."

For once, Yemon thought Yachiru didn't sound very cheerful. Now that he was close enough, in the still dim light of the pre-dawn, he saw she wasn't smiling. "Yachiru, we have to help him!"

"Don't get in the way," she said.

"That's Aizen! He's too strong f-"

"Ken-chan is the strongest!" she shouted, not looking at Yemon. "He can't lose!"

_Goddammit, we have to do something!_

Back on the battlefield, Aizen was once again talking, ostensibly to Kenpachi, but in a manner more befitting of a monologue.

"Do you really think you can defeat me?" He took a moment to look at the rest of the party, and turned back to Kenpachi. "As you are, not even all of you together could hope to defeat me. All the arrancar I so painstakingly put together, all the Captains of the Gotei 13, all those who I discarded, none could stop me. Not even Kurosaki could stop me."

"Blah, blah, blah. You always talked too much," Kenpachi replied dismissively, raising his sword.

"You've grown weak, Kenpachi."

"Have you looked at yourself?"

Having thus finished the conversation, at least from his point of view, Kenpachi rushed forward to resume his attack. Without moving from his spot, Aizen raised his one good wing, and a small ball of glowing energy appeared in front of one of its skulls. With an easy flick, it tossed it towards Kenpachi.

The resulting impact created a massive spherical blast that consumed everything it touched, and illuminated the still darkened wasteland as far as the eye could see. Back on the rock, Yemon had to cover his eyes with his arm against the glow, and so did Tatsuki. Only Yachiru looked at it with unblinking eyes.

"Holy crap, Kenpachi!" Yemon shouted.

"Stop it, Ken-chan is fine."

The energy hadn't even finished dissipating when Kenpachi emerged from the cloud of dust, right in front of Aizen. He still had his right arm across his chest, with the sword ready to strike. The impact had not been without consequence, and his arm and chest had large burns to show for it, but it didn't manage to slow him down. With a maniacal laugh, he sliced at Aizen.

His sword created a shower of sparks as it passed over his opponent's chest, but failed to wound him. Aizen countered easily and brought down his right hand, clawing again on Kenpachi's chest. He didn't even bother to defend himself properly, and the next attack from Kenpachi failed once again to wound him.

On his next attack, Aizen hit Kenpachi on the abdomen, drawing blood for a third time and cutting deep into his flesh. He didn't pierce through, but sent him flying back instead. Kenpachi landed with a crash and laid down on the ground.

"You thought I wouldn't notice?" Aizen said, raising his bloodied clawed hand as if to show it to Kenpachi. "That. Your soul sleep."

Yemon couldn't hear what was being said, but the way the fight was going was enough. He and Tatsuki looked at each other; the same worried, almost panicked look.

"Yachiru! We have to-"

"Shut up!"

Her sudden and unexpected outburst caught Yemon by surprise. He waited her out, but she didn't look at him, or say anything. After a while, Yemon broke the silence.

"He's going to get himself killed," he said.

Yachiru shook her head. "Ken-chan is the strongest."

Yemon furrowed his brow, trying to decipher the unusually hardened look Yachiru had. _Does she actually believe that?_

Aizen, in the meantime, was still talking.

"I can even see when. At least fifty years. Your spiritual power has lasted a long time, but being unable to regenerate it, you are doomed to die and disappear. You cannot possibly defeat me. Kurosaki alone managed to wound me."

"Ichigo," Kenpachi muttered. He was still laying down on the ground, and after saying that name, he grinned. "Man, I'd have liked to have a go at him again." He sat up. "But you know," he stood up as he talked, "I'm thinking you will do."

As his grin intensified, so did the sharpness of his reiatsu, and it started to materialize around him.

"Oooh," Aizen said in a half-mocking tone.

"How many pieces did Ichigo cut?" Kenpachi shouted as she charged forward. "What about this?"

It would have been hard to make Aizen's expression under his burned flesh and disfigured face, but for a moment he could have looked surprised. His counter was too late to block Kenpachi's attack, and it broke through his defences to cut deep across his chest.

He pushed back and disappeared in an instant, reappearing several meters away and holding his hand on his chest. Dark blood dripped out of the gaping wound.

"Ridiculous," he muttered. His reiatsu increased, slowing down the blood flow, until it stopped completely. It was all he had time to do before Kenpachi attacked again, bringing down a one-handed swipe that Aizen barely managed to sidestep.

"Bwahahaha! What's the matter? Come on!" He attacked again, a horizontal slash Aizen ducked under before countering with another clawed swipe at his stomach. The impact was deep and bloody, but didn't slow Kenpachi down at all. "Come on, where's your Zanpakutō?" Kenpachi shouted, attacking on the back slice and cutting Aizen's back, making a large rend through his good wing.

For a second time Aizen disappeared, and countered with another blast from one of his wing skulls. The blast was just as large as before, but even through it, Kenpachi's reiatsu could still be felt, sharp and murderous.

Even though Yemon couldn't see anything due to the bright blast, he could feel that reiatsu. They were a considerable distance away, and yet it felt stronger than it had ever been. Stronger than the day they met. Stronger than the day they fought the Deathclaws. It felt like he'd be crushed like an ant if he got any closer.

And so did Aizen's too.

"This is insane," he muttered, and looked at Tatsuki.

She was clutching her stomach with one hand, and looking at the fight peeking through the fingers of her other hand, which was shielding her eyes from the bright explosion.

"Are you hurt?" He reached out and grabbed Tatsuki's hand. Without even realizing it, she clutched Yemon's hand back with all her strength, making him wince in pain. "Tatsuki! Are you hurt?"

"Ah!" She finally looked at Yemon, and let go of his hand. "Ugh. It's... No, I'm not hurt." She forced herself to let go of her belly.

Yemon furrowed his brow, but before he could say anything, the fight took his attention again. It had been another blast from those skulls, and there was a third one coming.

_Kenpachi..._

"It's useless!" Aizen shouted. He was standing way above ground, sustained in thin air by his shunpo. "You are nothing! You couldn't defeat Kurosaki, you can't defeat me! I'll-"

His new monologue was interrupted by Kenpachi rushing out of the blast sphere. He was even more badly burnt than before, most of his shirt had been burned away, and the burns on his skin were starting to look much deeper. The blasts had started to burn into his flesh.

He was laughing. Laughing with complete abandon, without sanity, drunk on the bloodlust of a battle against an enemy of unfathomable strength.

Aizen reacted by instinct. He flung the ball of energy as quick as he could, but Kenpachi was moving at a speed he didn't think possible for anyone. Not even the God of Flash, Yoruichi. His attack met Kenpachi's blade, and as it exploded, both of them were engulfed by the explosion.

Both combatants emerged from the blast in mere instants. Kenpachi pushing towards Aizen, trying to reach with his Zanpakutō like a matador going for the bull. Aizen skidded to a stop mid-air and waited him out. In a split instant he dodged aside and, grabbing Kenpachi's arm as it passed, flung him down towards the ground. He succeeded, but not without getting a cut across the face on the return from Kenpachi.

Without missing a beat, while Kenpachi crashed down, he raised his arm and pointed at him. "Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō!" he shouted. There was a bright blue flash of light, and a gigantic beam of blue electrical and spiritual energy shot from his palm.

The attack crashed on the ground with a gigantic explosion, turning into a blue column of burning power as it did.

Aizen took a moment to recover his breath, still pointing forward with his outstretched arm. _This is impossible. This man never defeated Kurosaki. I did. My power is above him. Above everyone. _He put his other, non-outstretched hand on his chest. _I have enough power. I should have enough power, I would be granted more, and more, all the power I'd need. This is my chance, at last. I can complete the sacrifice. I can rebuild the King's Key, and rebuild the world after that. At last, I can-_

His thoughts dissipated when his arm took flight in front of his eyes. He was pointing with his palm at the explosion of his level 88 kidō, only it was no longer there, and flew off at the elbow, away from him.

And the ever present laugh of Kenpachi followed.

"Come on! Stop being a wuss!" he shouted. A second attack was dodged by Aizen as he disappeared, reappearing behind Kenpachi. He turned at a blazing speed, and again they slashed each other. Kenpachi looked like he had gotten the worst of it, but Aizen was the one to pull away. "What's the matter? Get your Zanpakutō out already! I wanna see it! I want to cut it!"

"Zanpakutō?" Aizen said, while he concentrated on his reiatsu to stop the bleeding from his wounds. "I don't have a Zanpakutō. The Hōgyoku decided long ago I didn't need one."

"Ya wanna bet?" Kenpachi said, holding his huge grin as blood dripped from his numerous wounds.

"I will admit, your power has grown since the last time I saw you. Even with your soul sleep as it is. But..." He paused, looking at Kenpachi intently. "DON'T BE CONCEITED!" He raised his surviving arm, pointing at the slowly brightening sky. "Seeping crest of turbidity. Arrogant vessel of lunacy!" A dark, black and purple power started to materialize around Kenpachi. He didn't move. "Boil forth and deny! Grow numb and flicker! Disrupt sleep! Crawling queen of iron! Eternally self-destructing doll of mud! Unite! Repulse! Fill with soil and know your own powerlessness!" As he chanted, the power grew around Kenpachi, and when the incantation finished, it finished creating a square block of black kidō. "A level 90 spell, with a full incantation! Witness real power and be crushed by it! Hadō 90, Kurohitsugi!"

The Earth stood still for an instant. The kidō held firm, its power could be felt crushingly even outside the coffin.

Then a crack appeared. Glowing bright yellow. A second one followed. They expanded, splitting into a spider web-like network, bright yellow still. Finally, with a blast of reiatsu, the kidō shattered.

For a moment Aizen saw, actually saw by a devilish conjuration of his mind, Ichigo rushing out of the box. It had happened last time, and it had cost him dearly. The mirage disappeared soon. It was Kenpachi who was coming out. Bloodlust cutting sharp through the air, surrounded by a yellow cloud of dense, suffocating reiatsu in the shape of a skull.

It was a feeling he had long forgotten. Fear. He reacted out of fear, shooting one of his skull blasts even though Kenpachi was so close to him. The former captain didn't even bother to slice at it with his Zanpakutō this time, he only had eyes for Aizen. He wanted to cut him so bad.

There was a new blast.

This time Yemon didn't completely avert his eyes. It didn't matter how bright it was, he couldn't peel his eyes away from the battle.

"He's not going to make it."

He turned to Tatsuki, who had uttered those words almost in a whisper. "What? He can make it, he's-"

"He's getting weaker," Tatsuki interrupted him. "You can tell, can't you?"

Yemon looked at the battle again, and tried to concentrate. It was all so screamingly powerful he had a hard time really making any details out. "Aizen is wounded too, they're both-"

"No!" Tatsuki interrupted again. "For fuck's sake Yemon, he's losing spirit power. Can't you feel his reiatsu? He's losing!"

"I... I can't tell."

"Ken-chan..." Yachiru mumbled, immediately commanding the attention of the other two. "Ken-chan is hurt. He is, right here." She put her hand on her belly, over the spot of the soul sleep. "Ever since then, he can't heal right. His reiatsu..." Her voice trailed off.

Yemon looked at Yachiru for a long second. He had seen that scar weeks ago, the one he thought was on Kenpachi's soul sleep. Back then he had concluded it couldn't be true that he couldn't recover his spirit power, it was far too strong for something like that. But Yachiru had her hand right on it.

_He's not been able to recover his spirit power and is still that crazy strong. Nuts._

Yachiru had her eyes fixed on the fight again, standing stiff and holding her Zanpakutō by its string with her left hand.

"We have to help him. Yachiru, we can-" Yemon said.

"No..." the pink-haired Shinigami said.

"What? Yachiru!" Yemon chided her.

"No!" She turned to Yemon, and he saw her expression. Serious, distressed, and... scared. "You don't get in the way of Ken-chan's fights!"

"But-"

"NO!"

The explosion had cleared out, and both Aizen and Kenpachi were standing inside the somewhat shallow crater it had opened. Kenpachi looked like he had gotten the worst of it, his burns were very severe, and on his right arm they were so deep they had burned all the way down to the bone. So had the burns on his chest, and several of his ribs were completely exposed. Blood continued to drip and flow from his wounds.

He coughed repeatedly, until he spat out the blood that had come up with the cough.

"It's over, Kenpachi," Aizen said. It was hard to tell how much his own attacks had hurt him, and how much of his burnt out flesh was the result of his ghoulification. "I will kill you on my next strike. And I will have those two. You have failed."

"Damn," Kenpachi muttered. "I guess this is it. I'm outta juice."

"Of course you-"

"That was fun," he continued, interrupting his foe. "I got only one good one left." He looked up at Aizen, and brought his Zanpakutō up. "So let's make it count."

Maybe Aizen had grinned back at Kenpachi, it was impossible to tell. He seemed to like the proposition, and let Kenpachi ready his stance without moving a muscle. Then, he charged forward.

Kenpachi never lost his grin. He reached with his left hand and grabbed the hilt of his Zanpakutō, and thus grasping it with both hands, swung at Kenpachi with every ounce of power he could muster.

"Ken-chan!" Yachiru shouted.

"Kenpachi!" Yemon echoed.

"Shit..." Tatsuki muttered.

The exchange had been brutally fast. The clash of reiatsu against reiatsu, both combatants hit as they rushed past each other. But one side came through in one piece. Only one.

Kenpachi hit the ground without letting go of his Zanpakutō. He would never stand up again, as half of him fell several feet away.

Aizen had to take a moment to recover. He hadn't emerged unscathed from the exchange, and finally was letting himself feel the pain he had denied himself during the battle. He put a hand on his chest, where his source of power resided. Or used to reside. He had sacrificed it for the sake of creating the King's Key, but he had failed at the last moment, coming just barely short of the sacrifice he needed.

_It is not something that would simply disappear. I will sacrifice these two, it will return. I can feel it._

He smiled inwardly. More than a hundred years anchored to that place, waiting for the right souls to come nearby. He had almost lost hope when Soul Society and Hueco Mundo collapsed into the Living World. But here they were, two who were still fully humans. Two with spiritual power.

A moment later he appeared in front of the three. Yachiru had started to run towards Kenpachi, leaving Yemon, Tatsuki, and Dogmeat behind. She skidded to a stop, while the others started to catch up.

"I have no interest in you," Aizen said, looking at Yachiru, "but I don't think-"

"I don't have time..." Yachiru said, interrupting Aizen while she reached inside her left sleeve with her right hand, "… to play with you!"

She pulled hard, and like a switch had been thrown, her reiatsu suddenly exploded. Yemon, Tatsuki, and Dogmeat were not simply stopped, the blast threw them backwards several feet. A blast of pink pressure, and much like it did with Kenpachi, it formed a near-solid face over her, a pink face like a giant cat.

And an instant later, it was gone. So was Yachiru. And Aizen.

"What the..." Yemon started to say.

His unfinished question was answered by an extremely loud crash and an explosion of reiatsu far above their heads. Aizen dropped like a falling star, with a huge trail of pink following him and crashing together in a massive explosion.

"Bloody hell..." Yemon muttered.

"No kidding..." Tatsuki replied.

The barrage from the pink-haired Shinigami looked unstoppable. Neither Yemon nor Tatsuki could really follow what was happening.

Dogmeat barking took their attention away. He was alternatively growling and barking at something on the ground.

"What's wrong mutt?" Tatsuki said, walking towards the dog. There was a small patch of cloth on the ground, and the dog looked enraged at it. "It's just some cloth."

Tatsuki picked it up, and almost instantly she felt her legs buckling under her as her strength left her. She dropped the thing, and would have hit the ground if Yemon hadn't caught her.

"What the..." she muttered, struggling to her feet helped by Yemon.

"What's th- Bloody hell, what's that thing?"

The small patch had fallen upside down, and there were several tiny mouths and eyes twitching on it. It was not a piece of cloth, it was some sort of living monster. Carefully, letting Tatsuki stand on her own, Yemon reached down to it. Even before he touched it, he felt his reiatsu being drained away.

"Don't touch it!" Tatsuki said.

"I know," he replied, pulling his hand back. "This thing absorbs spirit power. Where did it c- Oh hell!"

"What?"

"Don't tell me..." Yemon said, turning towards the battle again. "Don't tell me Yachiru was holding this."

"What? Why?"

"To make herself... weaker?"

Tatsuki opened her eyes wide in surprise. She had sparred with Yachiru, and she knew the pink-haired crazy was incredibly, unbelievably stronger than her. And now, it turned out she was even stronger than that.

As if to confirm their suspicions, Yachiru's reiatsu blasted away as she made a ferocious, pink reiatsu-blasting attack that crashed on Aizen, engulfing him completely.

He was still standing when the explosion finally dissipated, but it was all he could do. His legs were bent all wrong, barely holding him, and he couldn't even lift his only remaining arm.

"You... What are you... When..."

Yachiru didn't answer. There was a fire, a pink fire in her eyes as she looked at Aizen with a murderous intent that would have made Kenpachi proud. She had her short Zanpakutō in her left hand, the saya in the other, and both were stained with blood.

Before she could attack again, something happened to Aizen she didn't understand. A reddish light of kidō suddenly shot from his chest, and it was quickly followed by several cross-shaped beams of the same reddish light shooting from his back and piercing him completely. He doubled down in pain as more of these spears appeared.

His eyes opened wide in understanding. "Urahara... Kisuke... Damn you. Damn you! One hundred years... Damn you!" He looked up at Yachiru. She had not stopped looking at him.

"I don't care," she said. She raised her Zanpakutō as high as she could, and her crushing reiatsu blasted as she gathered all her strength. "I'm going to kill you."

The last thing Aizen saw was a bright cloud of pink reiatsu. It took less than a second for his entire body to disintegrate into spirit particles.

A few moments later, they had all gathered around Kenpachi. He was still barely alive, laying on his back and with blood all over and around him. Yachiru had been the first to get to him.

"Ken-chan!" she said, kneeling down by the former captain of the 11th Division.

"Ah, damn," Kenpachi said, speaking in a thin voice. "I knew you were holding back on me."

"No!" Yachiru retorted, shaking her head vigorously side to side, and sending a few errant tears flying. "Ken-chan would have never lost if he wasn't hurt! Ken-chan is the strongest!"

Kenpachi smiled, and with great difficulty, reached out to put his hand on Yachiru's face. "Dummy," he muttered, "don't make that face."

He breathed out, and as his eyes became glassy and fixed, his arm dropped to the ground.

"Ken-chan!" Yachiru shouted.

He didn't answer.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>Someone said that it's possible Yachiru is the strongest character in Bleach, just for a laugh. Well, there you have it.

Blackout1170: I see your point. My idea was for him to slowly start losing his composure, in the same way he did in the Manga during the final fight with Ichigo. He started that fight calm, got conceited, then confused when Ichigo kept kicking his butt, and ended up rather losing his composure. Hard to pull off properly though, in the Manga it took several chapters for it to happen after all :)


	22. Lost in Memory

"Memorials are history unfinished, or the first or rough drafts of history; antiquities are history defaced, or some remnants of history which have casually escaped the shipwreck of time."

- **Francis Bacon**, _The Advancement of Learning__._

* * *

><p>The Sun rose over the horizon as the echo of Yachiru's cry of anguish died out. With a whine, Dogmeat came to the fallen body of Kenpachi, laid down with his paws together under his chin, and continued whining sadly. Yemon approached almost in a tiptoe; it was hard to move under the pressure of Yachiru's reiatsu, even though she was not making an effort to bring it out. He knelt by her, and looked at the bloodied countenance of the former Gotei 13 Captain.<p>

His eyes were still fixed on Yachiru, even though there was no life behind the glassy look. His grin, too, looked just as big as when he was fighting with Aizen.

It was still too much for Yemon to take in at once.

_Goddammit, this is my fault. I should have listened to Tatsuki. I never bloody listen to her, I'm such a fucking idiot._

Tatsuki joined them, kneeling on the other side next to Yachiru, and not saying a word.

"I'm sorry," Yemon finally said, breaking the silence.

"Why?" Yachiru replied. "Didn't you see Ken-chan's face?" She turned to Yemon; he saw the long streaks of the tears running down her face, and the trembling yet big smile on her face. "He was so happy!"

"Yachiru..."

Tatsuki put her hand on Yachiru's shoulder, and as soon as the pink-haired shinigami had turned, she embraced her tightly. A second of initial hesitant surprise was followed by her uninterrupted crying.

Yemon and Dogmeat set to work while Tatsuki took Yachiru a few meters back. The dog followed Yemon's instructions to dig, he collected as many rocks as he could, and after an hour the remains of Kenpachi found their final rest in a shallowly dug mound, with the nameless broken Zanpakutō of the former Captain of the 11th planted on top.

Another hour later, they were still standing in front of it. Yemon didn't know what to say, and neither did Tatsuki. Yachiru simply stood on the spot, looking at the grave with an expression Yemon couldn't quite decipher. Sadness, happiness, somewhat whimsical, and more than a bit lost.

"Yachiru..." Yemon said, putting his hand on her shoulder. She barely reacted. He looked at Tatsuki, and she shook her head and gestured with it for Yemon to leave them. "Really now," he muttered once he was out of earshot. He sat down by the remains of their camp and laid back on the ground to look at the sky. He was still feeling very strange, and he was sure Yachiru had it even worse, so much he couldn't even imagine.

_I just can't believe all that's happened. Aizen. Who'd have thought. I wonder what he was waiting for, it sounded like he was still trying for the King's Key. Sigh, I wish Gran-gran would've told me more about it._

Yemon closed his eyes and took a deep breath. As all the pieces started to click together, there was one thing he started to realize.

_Kenpachi. And Yachiru. If Aizen really needed just us, these two just saved... the world. If there's anything to be saved. Shit._

"Yemon."

He opened his eyes to Tatsuki looking down at him. "What?"

"You okay? You look like you're sick."

Yemon closed his eyes and shook his head slowly. "I'm fine. Just... Just realized. Aizen."

"Yeah. Look, don't worry too much about what he said. He's... He _was_," she corrected herself, her voice dripping with venom, "he was a real piece of work. He said he knew you, but really, your reiatsu is so much like Ichigo's it's-"

"I know, I know," he interrupted, "that's not it but... thanks. I was thinking that if Kenpachi and Yachiru weren't here... Well."

"Saved our asses again."

"Saved everyone's," Yemon said, and opened his eyes. "That's the thing. I have no idea what he was planning to do, but he said he just needed us two. If it wasn't for them..."

"We'd not be here," Tatsuki finished, furrowing her brow. "And I mean it, not at all, I wouldn't have brought you this way."

That was something Yemon hadn't considered. He twisted his mouth while he thought, but Tatsuki didn't look away. After a few seconds, he nodded. "Right." He sat up, and saw Yachiru still by Kenpachi's grave, kneeling on the floor and with Dogmeat next to her. "Did you manage to speak to her?"

Tatsuki sighed. A very eloquent gesture on her lack of success. "I think she's feeling better, but it's going to be a while."

"I see."

"Anyway, come on, we're going."

"Huh?"

"She wants to be alone for a while. I told Dogmeat to stay with her," she said, standing upright and stretching. "Let's go check for Urahara's place in the meantime."

"What?" He arched his eyebrows and turned to Tatsuki. "We can't just leave her here, she-"

"She wants to be alone. Really Yemon, let's just go."

Tatsuki said that with a finality that didn't invite any answer. She left him and started packing up the camp, and didn't realize he followed her with his eyes and a rather annoyed expression. Nonetheless he complied without a word. Soon they were on their way, attired with the radsuits, a couple of Rad-X doses in the system, and carrying a few provisions under the suits. By the readings of the Pip-boy, they'd soon be into the high radiation zone of the Glow.

They left the bulk of their gear with Yachiru. There was no point carrying all instead of travelling fast and light. They still had quite a distance to cover, and Yemon led the way all day, pushing ahead with a strong pace and barely a word spoken. After a few hours, the croaking of the Pip-boy started to echo their steps as they arrived at the flattened, low basin where the real Karakura Town used to be.

"This is it, Karakura Town," Tatsuki said.

Yemon took only a moment to look around. They had come down into a very flat area, and it took him a while to finally find some remains of the town itself, the foundations of an old building of some sort. It was as if the entire city had been cut at ground level, and nothing higher than a fraction of an inch remained.

Here and there were a few small holes, the tell-tale scars of the nuclear bombs that fell long ago.

"Which way?" Yemon said curtly. His voice, muffled behind the mask of the radsuit hood, came out strained and hoarse.

"Let's take a break, you sound-"

"No," he interrupted, and tapped the croaking Pip-boy. "We can rest inside the Vault if it's there."

"And if it's not?"

Yemon shook his head. "Which way?"

He didn't wait for a reply before starting to walk again. After a small hesitation Tatsuki followed, pointing towards the general direction their destination was.

_Sheesh, he's stubborn. He's been walking in that thing all day under the Sun, if he passes out on me I'll kick his ass._

The silence was sepulchral, not even the wind dared disturb the quietness of the Karakura graveyard. With her attention diverted from Yemon, Tatsuki started to have time to think about where she was. Unlike the ruins of the fake Karakura Town, here there were almost no visual clues of what used to be in the town. Her mind, nonetheless, tried to recall the places, and people, that used to be there. She pretended to be lost and took a detour when their steps brought them too close to where her school used to be.

One hundred years wasn't enough to forget that place. Not even close. She felt a cold sweat broke out under the overheated radsuit, and her hands started to tremble. It was a familiar feeling, she couldn't believe it was coming back after so long without a fix of Med-X.

Her pace increased, until she was practically fleeing from that place. She was even hearing the voices of her classmates calling her. Orihime's scream, followed by the enthusiastic cries of Chizuru calling her her "princess". It was all disturbingly loud in her head, almost too much to stand.

She ran.

It was hard to breathe inside the suit, not only because the heat that had accumulated during their day-long walk, but also because she felt her grief choking her throat. The streets of Karakura Town were eerily empty, but the voices were still there. Calling her.

On the third corner, she turned, rushing past Orihime's favourite bakery. She closed her eyes as she rushed through, hoping not to see her friend coming out of the shop. On the next corner, she tried to turn a bit too sharply and lost her footing, stumbling sideways and crashing on the ground. She couldn't breathe. She reached up and clawed at the radsuit hood, trying to get it out.

"TATSUKI!" Yemon skidded to a stop by her and grabbed her hands.

"Let go! I can't breathe! Let go of me!"

"Stop! What's wrong with you? Tatsuki!"

"Ichigo, I can't-"

"YEMON!" He shouted as loud as he could, shaking Tatsuki's hands vigorously.

She opened her eyes and looked at Yemon. Behind the fogged visor of the radsuit hood, he saw her looking at him with wide, nervous eyes. He could see she was breathing heavily, and sweat was running down her face.

After a few seconds, she muttered a soundless "_shit_" and closed her eyes, falling forward and landing her head on Yemon's chest. The city had once again disappeared, and only the flat, empty wastes of the Glow remained.

"Are you better?"

"It's like they're calling me..."

Yemon took a deep breath. "I see. Let's find that vault, there's nowhere to stop here to take a break."

He helped Tatsuki to her feet, and made a quick examination of the radsuit. It had held well and, despite the scratches, hadn't broken at all when Tatsuki fell.

They resumed their walk at a slower pace. Fortunately, they weren't far from Urahara's shop. This time Tatsuki didn't pretend she didn't know where to find the entrance, although it wasn't hard to do either. The ground where the shop had been was as flat as barren as the rest, and the square entrance to the giant underground room was completely open.

"There it is," Tatsuki said.

Yemon took a peek through and almost fell backwards on his butt. "Bloody hell! It's huge! That means..." He looked down to the ground around him. "All this area is hollow! How can it even hold itself without collapsing?! And where's the light coming from? It looks like it's daylight down there!"

"Sandal-hat was a bit _peculiar_," Tatsuki replied, looking down at the hole. "Shit, the ladder is broken."

"Huh?" Yemon looked down too, and saw that the last five meters or so of the ladder had broken off. "Ok, let me go first."

"What? Why?"

"If it breaks, I have Hyrenkyaku. I can probably carry us both up to reach the ladder on the way out too."

"Uh. Okay." Tatsuki looked around nervously. "Be careful."

Yemon sat at the edge of the hole and put his feet with great care on the topmost step. The ladder was rusty and looked rather flimsy, but he proceeded down nonetheless. It was a long way down, and several of the steps felt as if they would break off the ladder any moment, but it held long enough for him to reach the bottom, and clear the last five meters with Hyrenkyaku.

He looked up and waved at Tatsuki. She nodded and, moments later, she started climbing down too. Hers were much more hesitant steps than those of Yemon, and she stopped completely when she came to the end of the ladder.

Guessing what she was thinking, Yemon jumped up with Hyrenkyaku, put his arms around her, and jumped back, landing safely with the help of his Quincy ability. Tatsuki had squeaked in surprise when he grabbed her at first, but didn't say a word as they landed.

"Here we are," Yemon said, letting go of Tatsuki. "This place's amazing. The walls are like open sky, and it's even light too."

"Yes, I know. I've been here."

"Right. You okay underground here?"

"It's..." She looked up, looking at the fake painted sky and clouds passing through it. "It's not that deep really. And it feels so familiar..."

"I see." Yemon looked around. "It wasn't what I expected."

Tatsuki turned to Yemon. "I bet. You know, Sandal-hat loved to see people's reactions when he brought them down here. This-"

She looked away, and clamped up with a snap of her jaw.

"This?" Yemon prompted.

""This... This is where I saw Ichigo for the last time. When he left for Hueco Mundo."

Yemon didn't say anything. He looked around and started walking off in a random direction, trying to find something interesting. Other than being tall, and huge, the place was empty. Rocks and dried-up old trees all over, it was the perfect empty space for things like practising shunpo, or even kidō.

He looked at the Pip-boy. Radiation levels were just as high as outside, and the spiripar counter was equally high. Karakura seemed to be a spirit particle-rich area.

"Well, this'll take forever if I just walk." He took a deep breath and jumped up to a high rock with Hyrenkyaku. It was a good vantage point, but even from there he couldn't see anything important. Tatsuki was standing in front of a pair of broken down tall pillars some distance away, and that was all he could see. He jumped off, and continued searching for a while.

_What the hell's Tatsuki doing? Right, she said something about my great-granduncle._

While he thought about it, he almost overlooked a door tucked under a mini-cliff on one side of the room. He did a double take, it was a thick double-door that looked not too dissimilar to the metal of the giant doors of his own vault.

"Tatsuki!" he shouted, failing to get her attention. He had to run all the way to where she was standing. "Hey, I found a door. I think there's an actual Vault under this place." He waited, but Tatsuki didn't answer. "Tatsuki?"

She jumped in place when Yemon grabbed her wrist. "What?"

"What what? What's wrong?"

She sighed and pulled her hand free. She pointed at the broken pillars with her thumb. "That. It's the entrance to Hueco Mundo."

"Right. Anyway, I found another entrance, there's a Vault down here." Tatsuki didn't say anything, so Yemon simply gestured with his head and turned. "Let's go check it."

It took a few steps for Tatsuki to start following. Yemon puffed once in exasperation; he was still annoyed, and now he was starting to be angry at himself too.

_Let's get in there and see what's what._

The door was definitely strong enough to be a Vault door, and it took Yemon a few minutes to figure out how to open it. With the help of the Pip-boy he figured out the entrance code, and after punching it in, it slid open almost noiselessly. He took Tatsuki's hand and all but dragged her in.

It was dark inside, but the echo of their footsteps made it clear they were walking on a metal floor. Yemon flicked the Pip-boy light on, and examined the space. It was a small room, with a raised grilled metallic floor and barren walls. A series of tubes ran over the walls and ceiling, with several valves that looked like showers. There was a switch by the threshold they had just crossed. Yemon threw it and, after the door closed, a red light started flashing.

Several seconds later the air inside the room whirled violently around them, and was followed by the valves releasing a high pressure shower of white liquid that filled the room and covered them completely.

"Fuck!" Yemon shouted, and Tatsuki echoed with a similar shout. After a few seconds, he realized the croaking of the Pip-boy was dying down. "Oh right. Tatsuki! Raise your arms!" He shouted as loud as he could. He couldn't hear if she had replied, but she complied.

The shower was followed by a blast of hot air, and soon they were clean and dry. The Pip-boy barely managed a pip from the geiger counter. Once the shower was done, the door on the opposite side of the room opened. There was a low inviting green light on the other side.

"Seems we're in the clear." Yemon took off the radsuit hood, and breathed in deeply. The air was crisp and fresh, the Pip-boy was nice and quiet, though the spiripar counter was still bouncing at the low end of the scale. The smell, the most important thing of all, was familiar. The filtered air of a Vault. "Ah, this feels great," he said, shaking his head and feeling the accumulated sweat on his hair and face cooling down.

Tatsuki followed suit. When she took her hood off, Yemon saw she was looking rather sick.

"Are you okay?"

She nodded. "Just fine."

"We're underground now, I-"

"I know!" she snapped.

Yemon opened his mouth, but stopped before saying anything. Instead, he shook his head and stormed off, going through the newly opened door. The other side was an empty room, there was some equipment by the wall which he guessed was standard atmospheric and filter controls. A few chairs were laying around too. It was, and felt, completely devoid of life. Nobody had set foot in that room in a while, although there wasn't much in terms of dust or grime.

The place looked as if it had been emptied not too long ago.

"Yemon," Tatsuki called. He didn't turn, only looked at her over his shoulder. She had her arms around her waist, hugging herself. "I'm sorry, it's just... it's just a lot harder... than I thought it'd be." She bit her lip and looked away, tightening her self-embrace.

Yemon turned away again. He took another deep breath, took a moment to put other thoughts aside, and turned to Tatsuki. He reached out and embraced her, and received a similar hug back.

Neither of them said a word for a while. It was Tatsuki who broke the silence. "I don't want to remember all this. It hurts too much..." She started trembling, and Yemon tightened his embrace. He realized she was itching for a hit of something to get high again. "I'm sorry. You can't understand, I-"

"Stop!" Yemon interrupted suddenly, letting go of her. "Goddamit, stop doing that."

Tatsuki looked up in surprise, and let go of Yemon. She didn't say anything, but her face eloquently asked the question. "_What?_"

"Dammit Tatsuki," he muttered, pressing with his fingers on his closed eyes. "I know you've been through a lot. I want to help you. But..." He opened his eyes and they locked gazes. For a moment he looked as if he was angry. "Stop talking as if I don't know what it's like to lose someone. You keep doing that, you did it back with Yachiru too. Just stop already."

"I... I don't..." she hesitated. _I really was, _she thought. She furrowed her brow and barely managed to choke back the sharp response that had tried to make its way out of her lips. There was no way Yemon could understand; if he could, he wouldn't have dragged all that out of her. She would still be in her shack shooting herself with blissful forgetfulness.

The image of the super-mutants that captured her flashed through her mind. That was the real reason why she was no longer in her shack, but she pushed it aside. Yemon didn't understand. She didn't want him to understand. And in thinking that, she understood.

_I'm scared of telling him._

Yemon hadn't stopped looking at Tatsuki while her confused thoughts tried to sort themselves inside her head. He felt like shit for pushing Tatsuki like that, but he was also tired of her glazing over his own feelings.

The standoff went on for only a few seconds, even though felt like an eternity. Tatsuki was the one to break the silence, speaking between gritted teeth. "You're right. Sorry."

Yemon waited for a couple of seconds, but all Tatsuki did was look away and say nothing else.

_Don't just apologize you numbskull. Ah well, can't really force her to open up._

He reached out and mussed Tatsuki's head, much to her annoyance. When she looked up and pulled Yemon's hand out of her hair, she saw he was smiling.

"Let's check the Vault. We can talk later when we're somewhere else, right?"

"I guess so..."

"Don't worry," he said, pointing at the ceiling, "this place's really not deep at all."

Tatsuki sighed as a response, and Yemon squeezed her shoulder once before leading the way inside the rest of the Vault. It was organized very differently from the other Vaults he had visited so far, be it Vault 12, 14 or 8. The entrance control room led to a short flight of stairs, and after that it opened up to the main space of the vault. Even though that main space was taller than the other rooms, there was only one level, and six doors opened up from there.

The air would have been completely silent if it hadn't been for the humming of the machinery in the background. There was a slight draft as air circulated through the room, showing that the life support of the Vault was still working well. Yemon looked at the Pip-boy again. The spiripar counter was definitely well above zero.

"Yemon. What's wrong?"

He showed the Pip-boy to Tatsuki. "It isn't filtering spirit particles."

"At least there's no radiation." Tatsuki closed her eyes and breathed in deep. "It's cool down here. Did your Vault smell like this too?"

"Kind of. It smelled more like people I think."

"You think?"

"I lived there all my life. It's hard to notice the smell of a place you're always in."

"Huh. I see." She opened her eyes, looked at the ceiling, and suppressed a shiver. "Is this place empty anyway?"

"Seems so," Yemon replied. He put his hands around his mouth and took a deep breath in. "OOOOOOOOOI! ANYONE HOME?!"

Tatsuki nearly jumped out of her radsuit. "Fuck's sake Yemon! What the hell?!"

"Sorry," he replied with a smirk. "Anyway, seems like nobody's home. Who was supposed to be here?"

"Oh. Well..." Tatsuki took a few seconds to think. "Sandal-hat and Yoruichi-san were probably in the fight. There was Tessai too, big scary guy. But at least the two kids should-" She clamped up and put both hands on her face, covering her mouth and nose.

"What's wrong?"

"There were two kids working... It's been a hundred years. If... They'll be..."

"Woah, calm down." Yemon reached out and put his left hand on Tatsuki's shoulder.

"They died down here. They're he-"

"Maybe. You don't know that." Tatsuki didn't answer. Yemon bent forward to speak close to her, and did so in a low, reassuring voice. "If they're here, and they died of old age, what's wrong with that? It's been a hundred years, right?"

"I guess..."

"You think they did okay down here? Did they get along?"

"Yeah. Kind of," Tatsuki said. Yemon pulled back and looked at Tatsuki. She couldn't help smiling. "They... You should have met them. The little twerp used to tease the poor girl all the time, and she used to get back at him whenever Yuzu came around. It was so funny!"

Tatsuki continued for a while, talking about the Urahara shop as if she could still find it just around the corner.

Yemon barely said a word and just let Tatsuki talk as much as she wanted. "Sounds like this Urahara guy was a riot. A lot like what I imagined reading his diary, actually."

"Haha! Yeah! But really, Yoruichi-san, you should have met her. She was just _awesome_. Like..."

"Sounds like you had a crush on her," Yemon added with a wink.

"Hey!" Tatsuki said, slapping him on the arm and laughing. "Not like that!"

"Really," Yemon said in a deadpan tone aimed at teasing her.

"Oh shut up," she said, giggling. She looked around as she laughed, and the sight of the Vault quickly brought her back to reality, making her giggle die in her lips.

"Better?" Yemon said, smiling knowingly.

"I suppose," she sighed.

"Look, wait here while I go check the rooms. This place is tiny anyway."

"It's fine, don't worry," Tatsuki replied.

Without a single word, Yemon walked towards the first door. He hesitated for a moment, and hit the opening lever. The door slid open noiselessly like a well-oiled machine, revealing a small empty room. There was a bunk bed on one side, looking as if the sheets and blankets had been just laid that same day. A couple of lockers, a chest of drawers, and a desk with some old books and stationery completed the furnishing.

Yemon sighed in relief. "Not much here."

"No, not really," Tatsuki said. She took a step inside and examined the books. They were all but ruined, and they started to fall apart as soon as she picked them up. "I don't think this has been touched for a long time."

"Yeah. Let's-"

Yemon was interrupted by a loud clanking sound. They listened closely as the echo of the sound died in the distance, until only the same machinery-backgrounded silence remained.

"What the hell was that?" Tatsuki said.

"Old machinery," Yemon replied dismissively. "Don't worry too much."

"If you say so..."

Tatsuki also found some clothes that were too small to fit her, which she assumed belonged to the kids. They left the room and opened the next door, only to find a nearly identical room. It had the same arrangement as the previous one, only instead of a bunch of books, the desk was decorated by a single computer.

"Hey, I can use that!" Yemon exclaimed, rushing to sit down and switch the terminal on. To his infinite satisfaction, the screen blinked green and black as it came to life. "Yes!"

"You found something?"

"Huh? No, no just logging in," Yemon said, waving at Tatsuki dismissively and concentrating on the computer.

"Really?" She looked over Yemon's shoulder. The screen was filled with gibberish, and Yemon was going through it while typing what seemed to be random symbols on the screen. "What on earth is that?" No answer. "Yemon?" Still no answer. "Okay, I'm just going to get naked over here, you can watch if you want..." Again, no answer. "Aw jeez, now I wonder if I should be offended or not!"

She left the oblivious vault dweller to his devices and decided to check the rest of the room instead. There wasn't much in the lockers or the chest of drawers, but she recognized the clothes. A few orange jumpers, black stretch clothes, it was what Yoruichi usually wore.

_So this was supposed to be her room._

Taking one of the orange jumpers, she checked it over her radsuit and found it was close to her size. After only a few moments thinking, she took a full compliment of clothes and stepped outside the room.

_Not that I need it, I bet Yemon wouldn't have noticed anyway! Hah!_

Her suspicions were confirmed when she came back inside the room with her new clothes on and Yemon ignored her completely. She dropped the radsuit and her worse-for-wear blue jumpsuit in a corner, put the small pack of items she had been carrying (food, first aid supplies, Rad-X, RadAway, and extra bullets) under the radsuit on top of the chest of drawers next to her gun and its holster, and sat at the bottom of the cot. She was amazed at how little dust there was on it, the whole vault was exceedingly clean for a place that had been uninhabited for a hundred years.

"Guess I'll just have to wait for Yemon to be done," she said out loud, getting no response. The idea of exploring the rest of the Vault didn't cross her mind, so sure she was about what she'd find. She laid back on the bed and looked up, as if trying to peer through the top bunk and the ground above. It didn't feel as oppressive as the other vault, or the ghoul tunnels they had been trapped in.

_Guess I'll take a nap until he wakes me up, like last time..._

They had covered what should have been two days of travel in just over twelve hours, and as soon as she laid down the exhaustion caught up with her. Despite her tiredness, her senses were still sharp and alert. Yemon's keyboard hammering keep echoin almost like machinegun fire in her head, and she still hadn't shaken the cravings for a fix of Med-X she had been feeling ever since they stepped into Karakura Town. If anything, htey were stronger than before. She _really _needed a fix.

She started wringing her hands together as she curled up in a fetal position, trying to keep her heat. It was cold in the Vault, much colder than she has thought it was. The clanking noises of Yemon's typing and the Vault machinery were getting louder and louder, until she couldn't stand it anymore. She opened her eyes and was about to angrily yell at Yemon to shut up, but was stopped by the sight of a pair of large eyes staring down at her.

"Aaaah!" she shouted, pushing back and banging her head on the wall.

Her scream was followed by Yemon's voice coming from above her, which was cut short with a similar scream when he fell from the top bunk to the floor. He stood up very quickly, looking around frantically. "What? What is it? What happened?"

It took Tatsuki a couple of seconds to take it all in. Yemon was wearing his Vault 14 Shihakushō instead of the radsuit, so at first she didn't realize what was happening or where they were. As soon as she did, she started laughing while rubbing the back of her head.

"Tatsukiiii," Yemon complained.

"Sorry!" she said, still laughing. "I'm sorry!"

"Sheesh. What was that scream?"

"I'm sorry, I think I was dreaming something. I thought there was someone in here looking at me."

"Damn, what a way to wake up..." Yemon said, rubbing his left shoulder and with a gesture of pain.

"I guess." Tatsuki threw the sheets and blanked aside and got herself out of bed. "Feels nice to sleep in a bed for a change. How long did we sleep?"

Yemon checked the Pip-boy. "You slept about ten hours."

"Wow, really? It felt like I just went to sleep." She stretched and looked around. The computer terminal was sitting unused on the desk. "Oh right, did you find what you wanted?" she said, pointing at it.

Yemon gave the computer the evil eye before replying. "No. The fucking thing is missing all the data on Vault 14. The log said the user named _hanakari_ pulled the disks out to take them to the vault. Why the _fuck _didn't he just copy the data?" He looked increasingly frustrated as he spoke gesturing wildly at the computer. "These fucking morons never heard of a fucking _backup_ or something?"

Tatsuki merely listened to Yemon rant on. It was a rare treat to see him cut loose like that, and there were enough reasons for him to do so.

"Yeah, it's my fucking fault, I know that," Yemon continued.

_Wait, what? I spaced out. _Tatsuki thought. "What are you talking about?"

"Why the hell did we come here?" Yemon said, shaking his head in frustration. "I'm a fucking idiot, got everyone in trouble and there's-"

A smack on the back of the head cut his rant short. "That's enough," Tatsuki said. "I'm the one who decided to come here, and so did Kenpachi, so shut up already."

Yemon put his hand to the back of his head and turned angrily at Tatsuki, but after a staredown that didn't go anywhere he shook his head and looked away without a word.

"Have you checked the rest of the Vault yet?" Tatsuki said.

Yemon rubbed the back of his head one last time and turned to Tatsuki. "I took a quick look only, but it's empty."

"Huh. Odd."

"What with the outfit anyway?"

"Oh, this?" Tatsuki said, raising her arms and showing the outfit. It was a black undershirt, an orange overshirt with two white stripes on the shoulders, black stretch pants, warmer wraps around her forearms and lower legs, and a beige sash around her waist. She was barefoot, but had a couple of light shoes on the floor by the bed. "My jumpsuit was on its last legs. You like it?"

"Hundred year old clothes?"

"Yeah." She pulled at the overshirt and adjusted the sash. She then made a mock punch to the air. "They feel as good as new, I guess Yoruichi-san had sturdy clothes."

"Hmmmm, Yoruichi-san's clothes, huh?" Yemon said, with a wry smile.

Tatsuki looked at Yemon and couldn't stop a tingle of blush creep up to her cheeks. "Hey! It's not like that!"

Yemon easily dodged the half-hearted slap Tatsuki had thrown, and didn't lose his smile, much to Tatsuki's annoyance. After puffing once, she sat on the bet to put her shoes on. "Anyway, shall we go then?" She stomped once to make sure the shoes fit properly, and stood up quickly. Her voice was lower when she spoke again. "Yachiru's waiting."

"Yeah," Yemon replied, matching her tone. "Let's check if there's anything we can use first."

"We can't really carry a lot, if you want to carry it under the radsuit," she said, pointing at the radsuits piled in the corner. Yemon had left his own small pack by Tatsuki's on the chest of drawers.

"I know, I know."

Yemon led Tatsuki through the Vault, showing what he had found out earlier. Of the four doors Tatsuki hadn't seen opened yet, the first one Yemon opened was the bathroom – thoroughly utilitarian and completely uninteresting. The next one was the kitchen, and a huge supply of preserved food almost a century old. Much of it looked edible in a pinch, and it was clear a good part of it had been removed.

"Someone lived in the Vault?" Tatsuki said.

"Or took it before they left," Yemon replied. Tatsuki looked at him inquisitively. "Well, if they took the disks out to bring them to the Vault, they may have taken food and stuff too."

Tatsuki furrowed her brow. "Right. That's what you said before."

"Yeah. Whoever was supposed to take the disks to our Vault never made it."

As soon as Yemon said that, a loud clank interrupted their conversation. Like before, its echo was lost into the bowels of the Vault.

"What the hell," Tatsuki muttered.

"Yeah. Looks like the machinery in this Vault is all under the floor in the main room. I haven't found an access hatch anywhere though."

"That's... odd."

"I haven't looked too hard for it though," Yemon shrugged. "No point really."

The next room was a small infirmary, set up half for patient care and half as its own live-in room. In a few minutes they had collected a good supply of bandages, gauzes, and other first-aid items. There were, unfortunately, no stimpacks to be seen anywhere.

The last room was the one Yemon had the keenest interest in searching. It was at the back of the Vault and by far the most cluttered one. There were piles of all sorts of old equipment, lab-like glassware, jars of chemicals most of which he didn't recognize...

"Sheesh, this is just like Sandal-hat's," Tatsuki said.

"How do you mean?"

"He loved working with all kinds of weird stuff like this," she said, poking at a strange glass contraption on a bench by her.

"Think I may find some spirit particle filter equipment here?"

"Don't ask me, I wouldn't even know what to look for!"

Yemon sighed and turned to face the room. There was a lot of work ahead of him.

While Yemon rooted through the piles and boxes of mysterious gear, Tatsuki took a stroll through the small Vault. The fact that there was no access hatch to the lower level bothered her, it had to be somewhere. It was while she explored that she noticed something odd. The room Yemon was rooting through seemed to be smaller than the one right next to it.

She walked past him and examined the wall. After a couple of knocks she got a hollow echo. It wasn't long before she found what appeared to be an out-of-place switch.

_I wonder what Sandal-hat was hiding here._

Without a second thought she threw the switch. There was a faint whizzing sound, and suddenly the door to the room slid shut. As it did, a loud siren tore through the air, while a red light flashed slowly inside the room.

"Bloody hell, Tatsuki! What did you do?" Yemon shouted over the screaming siren.

"Nothing!" Tatsuki said unconvincingly.

"What the hell is that?!"

As if to answer Yemon's question, a computerized word started a countdown over the internal PA.

"Ten... Nine..." the voice counted down slowly.

"Bloody hell we have to get out!" Yemon shouted, making for the door.

No matter how hard he tried it didn't budge. Tatsuki quickly came to her assistance, to no avail.

"Six... Five..."

"Tatsuki! Stand back!"

Yemon had taken a step back, and called forth his Quincy bow. He concentrated trying to create as powerful an arrow as he could.

"Four... Three..."

His shot met the metallic door with a powerful explosion of spirit power, but even though there was a grinding sound of metal agony, the door didn't budge.

"Two... One..."

With no more time, Yemon simply rushed to Tatsuki and put himself protectively over her, with his arms around her head. The siren stopped with a loud beep, followed with a low hiss as the door slid open and something moved at the back of the room.

"Huh... Nothing happened..." Yemon said, letting go of Tatsuki and looking around.

"What the fuck?" Tatsuki echoed, pushing away from Yemon and looking at the back.

Half of what should have been the back wall of the room had slid open, revealing an extension to it. There was a large screen on the back of it, presiding over a glass display of some sort. Tatsuki and Yemon walked to it with somewhat hesitant steps after the fright they had just been through.

When they were close enough, Yemon read the message on the screen out loud.

"Let's see... _Thank you for pressing the emergency hollow attack release button. Please be careful with the equipment and return it once you are done._ Huh. Oh, there's more down here... _P.S.: If you thought the warning was some kind of self-destruct mechanism... then you have no sense of humor._"

"You have to be kidding me!" Tatsuki shouted.

"Bloody hell," Yemon replied, taking a deep breath and trying to calm his still fast-beating heart. "What the hell was that!"

"Sheesh, that damn Sandal-hat..." Tatsuki said, shaking her head. She looked down at the glass display, and gasped when she saw what was inside. "Holy shit! Look at this!"

The display was encasing what appeared to be a strange, large rifle. It had an extremely bulky body, with a ten inch wide square stock, with several cylinders or chambers of some sort interconnected with it, and a long barrel ending in a three-pronged claw. Next to it there was a pile of gray-painted cells with a radiation logo painted prominently on the front.

"What the hell is this thing?" Yemon said, shock clear in his voice.

"Emergency hollow fighting equipment, if that stupid note is to be believed."

Tatsuki opened the display. She reached out with care and, almost reverently, took the rifle in her hands. It was not as heavy as she thought it'd be, maybe fifteen pounds or so. She didn't even think about bringing it up to shoulder height, she held it by a handle on the back of the stock, and a second handle that was stuck in the middle of the rifle. It looked as if it was supposed to be held at waist height, like a minigun or some other heavy weapon like that.

"I think I'm taking this," Tatsuki finally said. Looking up at Yemon and grinning.


	23. The Café of Broken Dreams

"Here is where you'll always find me,

Always walking up and down.

But I left my soul behind me

In an old cathedral town."

- **Al Dubin**, _Boulevard of Broken Dreams._

* * *

><p>Tatsuki looked at the low valley extending in front of her. By her reckoning they were less than twenty kilometres from the Hub, and could make it there that same day if they kept a good pace. However, that valley held an unexpected surprise.<p>

"Tatsuki! Wait up!"

She turned to Yemon, who was waving at her. He wasn't far behind, but Yachiru and Dogmeat had both lagged considerably. The pink-haired Shinigami plodded along slowly, downcast and barely speaking. Dogmeat kept pace with her, and the worry that the grey mutt conveyed was as eloquent as if he had been a person.

She adjusted the strap of the plasma rifle on her shoulder and balanced the leather bag of ammo. Together with the newly repaired railway rifle, courtesy of a pressure cooker from Urahara's vault, she was carrying considerable weight. Even so, she was not willing to forego any of her weapons, as long as she had ammo for them and they could fire reliably.

Mirroring her actions, Yemon adjusted the strap of his pack, and made a gesture of pain when he placed it back on his chest.

"Still hurts?"

"It's not too bad," he said. His attention was diverted towards what Tatsuki was looking at. "What's that down there?"

"Looks like a trading post." She pointed ahead, though it was too far to see exactly what she was pointing at. "See all the Brahmin and the loads?"

"Hmmm, trading post." Yemon looked at the Pip-boy. "It's weird that they're not at the Hub though, we aren't far."

While they talked Yachiru caught up with them. Without warning, she jumped on Yemon's back, and nearly knocked him off his feet.

"Augh, Yachiru! Wait, let me-" He pulled at his backpack strap as Yachiru let go. Once he had put the pack proper on his chest instead of his back, Yachiru jumped up again, putting her arms around Yemon's shoulders and her legs around his waist. With Yemon's knife on his back, it was a somewhat awkward position.

_Not like I have a back the size of Kenpachi's..._

"Whatcha doing?" Yachiru said.

"Oh just looking down there," Yemon pointed down. "There's a trading post or something, want to go explore it?"

"Sure."

It wasn't a particularly lively response for Yachiru, but it was better than what they had been getting for the last few days. Yemon smiled inwardly, grabbed Yachiru's legs to make her ride more comfortable, and they started the walk down towards the run-down building.

Despite the amount of cattle and the piles of crates and boxes, there were no people milling around. Tatsuki had the railway rifle in her hands by the time they had arrived to the main building.

"It's too quiet," she said.

Yemon looked at her while listening carefully. The sounds of the brahmin and the whistling of the wind were the only noises he could distinguish. He let go of Yachiru, and she jumped back on the ground. "Calm down Tatsuki," he said, walking into the building.

"Wha- Yemon!"

Tatsuki rushed after him, and nearly bumped on his back when he came to a sudden stop. They had entered what appeared to be the main lounge of a bar. There were a few dirty, empty tables, an unused craps table to their right, and to their left there was a bar. A woman was sitting on a stool by the bar, and another behind the bar itself. They both turned to the newcomers as soon as they stepped in.

The one sitting was a very short woman, about five feet tall if that. She had long, dark, olive-green hair, a narrow face with a pointy chin, a small nose, and clear, violet eyes. She had a large, white hairclip on the right side of her head, wore a white dress with sleeves so long that they went past her hands, and from where she was sitting Tatsuki could see she was wearing two belts around her waist. She kept one of her hands up on her face, covering her mouth with the long sleeve.

The woman behind the counter was much taller, well over five and a half feet. She had messy, short blonde hair with a few braided locks, and bright green eyes. She wore a long sleeved jacket, with a high collar zipped all the way up to her nose; it covered most of her face, but revealed all of her midsection, up to the underside of her large breasts.

They looked at each other for a few moments, until Yachiru and Dogmeat walked in.

"Whassit?" Yachiru said in a flat voice.

"Uh, I..." Yemon hesitated. The blonde woman gestured towards the empty stools by the bar, while the short one jumped down the stool and walked to the corridor at the back of the lounge, looking at the newcomers as she did and never removing the sleeve from her mouth.

"Come on," Tatsuki said, after the woman was gone. She was the first one to accept the wordless invitation of the blonde behind the counter, putting her railway rifle on her shoulder with an apparently relaxed gesture.

Yemon started to follow, keeping an eye on Tatsuki when he realized she wasn't as relaxed as she appeared. However, they both stopped dead on their tracks when the woman turned to the back of the bar, and they saw she had several weapons on her. She had what could have been a really large sword hanging across her back, only it was strangely wide to really be a normal blade, and a more regular-looking katana hanging from her belt. She turned when she heard them stopping, and spoke after a few moments.

"Are you looking at this?" she said, putting her hand on the hilt of the sword on her waist and unsheathing it in part. It had a green tsuka and a plain, hexagonal tsuba. "Don't mind _Kyōka Suigetsu_," she continued, emphasizing the name before sheathing it back, "it's nothing but a discarded tool." She paused for a moment. "Useless. Just like me." Her voice was low and lifeless, she sounded as if every word carried the weight of a hundred memories she'd rather forget. She gestured towards the seats again. "Please, have a seat."

The blonde woman placed three glasses on the counter, and while the party seated themselves, she dug a bottle from under the counter.

"We do not offer much variety," the blonde woman said.

"We'll take what we can," Tatsuki replied, putting her bag of caps on the counter. "Thanks. I'm Tatsuki, this is Yemon, and that's Yachiru."

The blonde poured the pungent, amber liquid in each of the three glasses. "You may call me Harribel." She left the bottle on the counter and stepped back, resuming her work wiping out the glasses on the back of the counter without another word.

"_Sheesh, and I was going to ask her about this place,_" Tatsuki muttered. "What do you th-" She turned to Yemon as she spoke, but stopped mid-sentence when she saw he wasn't there. And neither was Yachiru on her other side. "Well nuts, where did these two get to? Hey Harribel, did you see where these two went?"

She didn't answer, merely kept giving her back to Tatsuki and cleaning the glasses. Tatsuki was about to ask a second time, when a sound caught her ear. It came in the direction of the corridor at the back of the lounge; someone crying. It sounded familiar.

"Why did she leave me?!" the same voice shouted.

Tatsuki felt her blood turn cold in her veins. That voice, if there was something she wasn't prepared for was that voice. It had been a hundred years but she could still recognize that feminine voice.

_It's impossible..._

"No! Leave me alone!"

Without even stopping to think, Tatsuki jumped off her seat and rushed to the back of the Café. Along the way she dropped her railway rifle, Urahara's weapon, and even her bag of ammo. The holster strap of her 10mm gun got tangled with it, and she dropped that too. Anything to move faster.

"Orihime!" Tatsuki heard herself shout. She was feeling very strange, like it was all happening to someone else and she was a mere spectator.

"Tatsuki-chaaaan!" Orihime's voice called.

It was close. Tatsuki kicked a door down and rushed blindly past it, and immediately fell down a slope and into open wasteland. Cursing and coughing in a cloud of dust, she jumped to her feet and looked around. She must have taken a back exit off the building. It didn't matter, she frantically scanned for the origin of the voice.

"Why..." Orihime's voice again, followed by a sob.

There she was. Burnt orange hair, kneeling on the ground with her back to Tatsuki. It was her. Without even thinking, Tatsuki slapped herself as hard as she could. It hurt like a bitch.

_It's wrong... This can't be..._

She tried to run towards Orihime, but she hadn't taken three steps when she felt a weight on her shoulders like the whole creation had fallen on her. With it, something blinked into existence in front of Orihime. White, grotesque wings, dark horrifying face.

"Aizen," Tatsuki gasped. She looked down at herself. She tried to shout '_it can't be real!_' to her own body with all her strength, but she didn't even believe it herself. She felt on her face the burning sensation of her own slap, each one of her senses was telling her both Orihime and Aizen were right there in front of her. And she was frozen in place. She couldn't move a muscle.

* * *

><p>In the meantime, Yemon was going through a very similar experience. He sniffed the glass of amber liquid, and immediately started coughing. When he turned to Tatsuki to ask her what she thought of it, she wasn't there.<p>

None of his companions were. Only Harribel was still behind the counter, wiping glasses clean with methodical slowness.

"Where the hell did they go?" he muttered. His eyes became unfocused as he concentrated on trying to feel reiatsu around him. He couldn't feel Yachiru's presence at all, as usual. Harribel's, on the other hand, was very strong and distinctive, moreso because he felt it was probably being suppressed too. There was something odd about it, and he couldn't help but eye the blonde bartender with some suspicion.

_What is she? No, before that, where's Tatsuki?_

After a few seconds he felt Tatsuki's reiatsu coming from somewhere at the back.

_What is she doing?_

His train of thought was interrupted when a loud banging sound came from the back of the room. It sounded like someone was hammering at a door or a wall. A yell followed. "Let me out of here!"

Yemon's eyes opened wide in surprise. He slammed the glass on the counter and turned around like a flash.

_That's-_

"Let me out!"

"Maya!" Yemon shouted, rushing towards the back of the building. The banging continued undeterred, until Yemon found the origin, a locked door at the back. "Maya!"

"K-Kurosaki-kun?"

"Stand back!" Yemon took a step back and, mustering all his strength, he gave the door such a kick that it was sent flying off its hinges in a shower of splinters. He didn't slow down, and followed inside the room.

"Kurosaki-kun..."

He still couldn't quite believe it, but there she was. Blonde hair, big blue eyes, somewhat reddened with two trails of tears down her face. It was her. She looked as gobsmacked as he was feeling.

"Maya! What... What are you doing... How did you..."

He didn't know what to ask first. While he was trying to make up his mind, Maya jumped at him and hugged him tightly, burying her face against his chest.

_It's really her, what's she doing out here?_

"Maya, what are you doing out here? What happened?"

"I-I wanted to see... Kurosaki-kun..."

A chill ran down Yemon's spine. "Did something happen? Is the Vault okay?"

Maya didn't answer at first. She didn't let go, or look up; she only started trembling. Yemon gave her a few seconds, but as she didn't answer, he pushed her back gently but firmly, forcing her to look at him.

"What happened?"

"I... The matron... You were so late. We couldn't wait. Everyone..."

Yemon's experience turned more and more alarmed. It was like his worst nightmare was coming to life.

The now familiar voice in his head chose that moment to make itself heard.

_**What a moron. You really eating this up, aren't ya?**_

Yemon didn't bother to mutter the usual _shut up_ to himself. He took a reflexive step back as he thought he wanted to storm out of the building and get to the Vault as fast as he possibly could.

As if she had been reading his thoughts, Maya reached out and put her arms around him again. "Don't leave me! Please... Kurosaki-kun... Please don't leave me..."

"Maya, I'm not-"

"I know... I know you don't love me..." Her low, hesitant voice cut through Yemon like a hungry Deathclaw. "But please, don't leave me. Please..."

Yemon couldn't speak, or even move. At that time, he had forgotten about Tatsuki, Dogmeat, or even Yachiru.

* * *

><p>Yachiru herself was still sitting on her stool. With her Zanpakutō on the bar, her arms crossed over it, and her chin resting on her arms, she was looking at the glass she had just emptied with a vacant expression. She hadn't even noticed the absence of the rest of her party.<p>

"Eh, what the hell? What's with that attitude, kid?"

Her eyes opened wide with surprise at the familiar raspy voice from behind her. She jumped off the stool and turned to face what she thought was impossible. With his worn-out, chipped blade resting on his shoulder, and his usual grin on his face, Kenpachi was standing right there.

"K-K-Ken-chan!"

"Yo!" His grin twisted into a smirk. "Ya look surprised."

Yachiru didn't say anything, she just looked at Kenpachi with her wide open eyes and mouth agape. After a few seconds there was a strange feeling on her back, it almost felt like the pressure of reiatsu, only it was firmly pressed along her back instead of on and around her.

It didn't distract her from Kenpachi. He, thought, did change his expression. "Oh. Interesting."

"What is?" Yachiru said.

For an answer, Kenpachi made a sudden swipe at her. Even though it looked like an easy attack, it summoned a blast that blew away the bar and all of the building behind Yachiru. The chipped blade cut diagonally across her chest.

As her blood splattered out, Yachiru took a surprised step back. Pain flared through her. She put her right hand on her chest, searching for something.

"Well, ain't so strange if you're surprised. You left me there to die, didn't you? What an ungrateful kid."

Yachiru didn't answer. She was looking at her hand, covered in blood, as if she didn't quite understand what it was. Seemingly tired of waiting, Kenpachi attacked for a second time, this time cutting horizontally through her stomach and blowing everything that was still standing behind Yachiru. Once again, the pink-haired Shinigami took a step back, doubling down and looking at her wounds.

Her blood was escaping with a sweet, slow drip through her torn clothes. She wiped some of it with her right hand, and rubbed the fingers together, feeling the slick and sticky texture.

A small giggle escaped her lips, as they drew a ghost of a smile. The pain was intense, more intense than anything she had ever felt. There was that strange feeling of reiatsu pressing on her in several parts of her body.

It was _awesome._

She looked up at Kenpachi and her smile broke out in earnest. She reached back to the bar and grasped the tsuka of her sheathed Zanpakutō with her bloodied right hand.

"Oh?" Kenpachi said, raising an eyebrow.

"Let's play!" Yachiru shouted, pushing forward with all her power and swinging down with all her power. The sheathed blade crashed on Kenpachi's chipped one, and the clash of powers kicked up a whirlwind of air, sand, and power.

* * *

><p>Three pairs of eyes followed her fight from the back of the Café building. One was the short, violet-eyed woman that had been at the bar when the travelling party had arrived. The other two were a tomboyish woman, with jaw-length blue hair, different coloured eyes (right one blue, left one amber with a red circle painted around it), and a hollow-like adornment on her head finished in a horn on her forehead. And a tall, dark-skinned amazonian woman with long curly brown hair and a three-pronged diadem on her head.<p>

The three of them covered their eyes when a particularly vicious slash from Yachiru kicked up a tremendous blast of air and sand.

"Sheesh, that bitch's still alive?" the tomboy said. "Look at her, how many times did she get cut?"

"Are you stupid? Harribel-sama said she was strong," the Amazon replied.

The remark had an immediate effect on the tomboy. She turned to the Amazon while gritting her teeth. "Mila Roseeeeee!"

"Oh stop it you two, it's unsightly," the short woman chided them, never removing her hand and sleeve from her mouth.

"Shut up!" the other two shouted in perfect unison.

A loud bang from one of the closed rooms behind them caught their attention. They looked back, and the clattering noise continued. Then there was a scream for someone to get out.

"I thought you had tied her," Mila Rose said, looking at the tomboy.

"Shut up! That one was Sung-Sun's!" she replied, pointing at the violet-eyed one.

"Ara? Not me, I had the dog," Sung-Sun replied, pointing with her free hand at Dogmeat. He was trapped inside a cage outside the building. Or rather, outside of where the building used to be, before Yachiru blew it to bits fighting with herself. And he was barking, jumping up and down, and trying to force the bars open with his teeth like he was possessed by something. "Such a cute little thing, I couldn't bring myself to kill it."

"Apacci has such a bad habit of blaming others for her failures," Mila Rose said, pointedly ignoring the tomboyish Apacci while talking about her.

"She most certainly does," Sung-Sun replied.

"You bitches are-"

Her protests were interrupted by the explosion of Yachiru's body crashing on the ground at incredible speed. Standing on her Sonido, Harribel was several meters above her, and blood was dripping from the blade of Kyōka Suigetsu.

"It's over," Mila Rose said. She got nods of agreement, but no words from the others.

* * *

><p>Completely oblivious to what was happening outside, Tatsuki was facing her own problems. The moment had dragged on for an eternity, with Aizen walking in slow motion towards Orihime.<p>

_Get up. Get up. Get up!_

She had been willing for it to happen ever since Aizen had appeared. It didn't matter who got up, either her legs found their strength again, or Orihime got up and ran away. Someone had to get up.

Aizen stopped just a step away from Orihime. She couldn't see the girl's face, she desperately wanted to see it, but she couldn't. No matter how much she called, she had never turned back either. Now Aizen was standing just a step away. He looked up. And even with the grotesque, deformed face he had, Tatsuki could tell that the son of a bitch was smiling. Smiling at her.

"GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM HER!" she shouted. Her legs trembled with the strain she was putting on them and finally, with a feeling like something had snapped, she pushed the world that was resting on her shoulders and stood up.

She ran.

Towards Aizen.

She ran with the speed of desperation, through the wall of reiatsu and the sea of power that radiated from Aizen. She didn't care. There was nothing, _nothing_, that could keep her away from Orihime this time. The disjoined feeling of looking at herself from afar was still there, and she didn't think it strange to be cheering at that girl that looked so much like herself.

As she ran, she reached back, sideways, looking for any of her weapons. All she found was her brass knuckles, in a pocket of her orange overshirt, and was wielding them by the time she stepped between Orihime and Aizen.

"Orihime! Get out of here!" she shouted. She hadn't looked at her yet. She didn't dare look back at her face, no matter how much she wanted to. She only had eyes for Aizen.

Orihime didn't move. She didn't say anything either. Tatsuki raised her guard, taking a boxing stance.

"How pitiful," Aizen said, in the raspy, ghoulish voice Tatsuki remembered well.

She felt her stomach turning and tightening, but it only steeled her resolve. She wasn't budging one inch.

_Not this time you son of a bitch. Not again. I'm already dead, you think you can scare me?_

* * *

><p>Yachiru was taking her time to stand up again. She only managed to get up on her knees. Her face had a lost look about it, like she was trying to look for something. While she was knelt down, Kenpachi approached her from behind, looking worse for wear but not as bad as Yachiru herself. He was covered in bruises and his nose was broken. Yachiru was instead covered in blood, and her shihakushō looked like it'd fall apart in rags at any moment.<p>

Without saying a word, Kenpachi raised his sword, grinned, and brought it down in one mighty swing. It cut through Yachiru's shoulder, cracking ribs and slicing inside her as it made its way down to her waist. She had started raising her sword arm much too late to block the attack, and her short Zanpakutō simply fell on her back across her shoulders with her move. She wrapped her left hand over her chest, trying to hold both her halves together before her insides spilled out. Blood continued to pour out of her.

Slowly, she turned to look over her shoulder, and smiled sadly. "I'm sorry Ken-chan. I can't play with you anymore."

She turned away and let her head hang down, not moving another muscle for several seconds, still holding the same posture with her right arm up and holding her sword on her back, and her left arm holding onto her right side across her chest. Then, and with a sudden, fast movement, she snapped to grab something in front of her stomach with her left hand, followed by a swipe in front of her with her sheathed Zanpakutō.

There was a yell of pain, and surprise, and Harribel appeared out of thin air in front of her. She was holding her right forearm with her left hand, because it was snapped and bent in an unnatural angle. Her face only showed the limitless surprise she felt.

"Kyōka Suigetsu," Yachiru said, looking at the Zanpakutō that was lodged through her stomach. "That was Ai-chai's sword. He could hypnotize people with it." She looked up at Harribel, who was still just looking at Yachiru without believing what just had happened. She tilted her head sideways as she spoke. "You learned a new trick, didn't you? You were looking inside my head." She made a wicked grin. "Naughty, naughty."

Holding onto the hilt of the green-hilted Zanpakutō, she felt that the hypnosis was disappearing. Maybe Kyōka Suigetsu was trying to get on her good side. The pain of all the false wounds from the non-existent Kenpachi was disappearing. Her body was whole. And instead of those, it was in the places where she had felt the strange pressure of reiatsu that she had several wounds. The wounds Harribel had given her when trying to kill her.

She looked over her shoulder, but the illusion had already disappeared.

Kenpachi was still dead.

"How... How did you..." Harribel said, unable to the question.

"Ken-chan," Yachiru said, grinning again. "He had a fight once where he couldn't see or hear anything. A looooong time ago. He told me he won by feeling where he was getting cut." She pulled Kyōka Suigetsu out of her, and now real blood spurted out of her body. "I could feel reiatsu. I could have done it too, but... it was too much fun to play with Ken-chan one last time."

She stood up fully, holding Kyōka Suigetsu in front of her in a reverse grip, pointing down. Her grin had intensified now, driven by pain and bloodlust. Her reiatsu surged, until it started to become visible around her in a pink hue, shaped like a cat's face. Flares of reiatsu arced around Kyōka Suigetsu, increasing in intensity over and over until, with a final spike that crushed the rocks and rubble several meters around Yachiru, it shattered into a million pieces with a final, agonizing scream only Harribel and Yachiru managed to hear.

"Now, do you want to play with me some more?" Yachiru said. While the wounds she had on her were real, and not as serious as the imaginary ones the illusory Kenpachi had given her during her hypnotic trance, she was still covered in blood and cuts, and her clothes were all torn and soaked in blood. And despite that, she was grinning madly.

"Kyōka Suigetsu. You dare destroy Aizen-sama's Zanpakutō."

Yachiru's grin faded as she acquired a bummed pout. "You can't fight without it? Booooo-ring."

"No. I'll make you regret it." Harribel reached awkwardly with her left hand to the right side of her back, putting a finger on the hilt of the wide sword she had sheathed there. She pulled to unsheathe, and grabbed the hilt precariously with her broken arm. "Destroy, _Tiburón_."

Looking at the scene unfold from the surviving part of the Café, the three companions of Harribel, the _Tres Bestias_, couldn't believe what had just happened.

"Harribel-sama!" Apacci shouted. She made out to dash away, but before she could start running, Mila Rose grabbed her. "What are you doing you idiot, let go!"

"Harribel-sama has unsheathed. That girl is done."

"You said the same before!"

"Will you two stop it?" Sung-Sun interrupted. "Before that, there's another problem."

"What-" A crash from behind one of the locked doors answered her unfinished question. "Right, those two. I'll take care of them."

"Don't kill them!" Mila Rose shouted as Apacci walked back with an annoyed, heavy step. "Harribel-sama wants to take them to-"

"I know!" Apacci snapped. She stopped in front of one of the locked doors, and without a second thought kicked it open. Inside the room, Tatsuki was standing in front of a wall, wielding her brass knuckles and with her guard up. Apacci grinned with a face of disgust. "What a stupid bitch, she's still hypnotized."

* * *

><p>Yemon was laying on the ground, completely immobilized. With Kyōka Suigetsu gone, the hypnosis was wearing off, and with it the world in front of his eyes was changing. For one thing, it wasn't Maya holding him tightly. He was just tied down.<p>

"What the fuck..." he muttered, struggling.

"Please don't go Kurosaki-kun," Maya pleaded. She seemed to be blinking in and out of existence.

"What's this? I'm- Ugh..."

Yemon struggled, but neither the rope nor Maya eased up.

_**You really suck, you know that? Don't make me come kick you ass**_**.**

He furrowed his brow and shook his head. That voice in his head kept getting clearer and clearer, and for some reason it scared the hell out of her. He forced himself to kneel up, and then stand up. He was tied down like a sausage. Maya had finally disappeared.

"I can't believe that wasn't real. It felt so real..."

_**Tsk. Fine, I warned ya.**_

There was a strong pulse of reiatsu, and Yemon's vision wavered. The world lost its colour in front of his eyes, and he had the strange feeling of something crawling inside his consciousness. Before anything else happened, the door of the room he had been left in slammed open.

On the threshold was Mila Rose. Yemon didn't recognize her, but he could feel she was very strong. That brought his attention to the dance of reiatsus around him. Another two he didn't recognize, Tatsuki, Yachiru... There was a large spike of reiatsu coming from someone close to Yachiru.

**_Jeez, took you long enough to notice. Now, chop chop, get your ass in gear._**

He couldn't peel his eyes from the woman, who was looking at him with a strange expression of surprise.

"I got a monkey on my face or something, gorilla woman?" Yemon said.

_Did I just say that?_

That didn't set well with Mila Rose. She gritted her teeth and snapped at Yemon. "What did you just say you little fucker?" She reached back and unsheathed a huge broadsword. "Harribel-sama said not to kill you, but I can cut your fucking legs right now."

Yemon cursed internally, but found himself grinning outwardly at the woman. He didn't understand why, provoking her was the last thing he wanted to do.

_**Come on partner, show me what you're made of.**_

Without any more fanfare, Mila Rose pounced at him. Everything slowed down around him as his heart pounded hard inside his chest. He concentrated to summon his Quincy bow. Tied down as he was, he only had one chance. He summoned the small one-handed bow, and jumped back while trying to shoot as fast and wildly as possible. He didn't count the shots, but his haste and lack of preparation made the bow collapse almost instantly. The blast was, however, enough to blow away the ropes around his hand, and free himself.

Just in time to dodge under Mila Rose's lunge. Yemon jumped back with Hyrenkyaku, crashing through the thin and decrepit wall with ease.

He called his regular bow, and jumped up with a second Hyrenkyaku as soon as his feet touched the ground, jumping over Mila Rose's follow-up attack, firing an arrow down as she passed. She dodged well, and passed through to the opposite side. She and Yemon looked at each other as he landed.

"What the hell's going on?" Yemon said. "Who are you people?"

Mila Rose grinned, moving her chin up to look down on Yemon. "Mila Rose Franceska, servant of the great Harribel-sama."

Yemon's eyes narrowed. "And why are you attacking us?"

"Hm? Not going to introduce yourself?" She grinned. "I guess it doesn't matter. Harribel-sama has taken an interest in you. She thinks you could be of use to Aizen-sama."

He found his jaw going slack at the sudden mention of Aizen. Mila Rose didn't miss it.

"Hmmmm, that's unusual. You know the name."

Several thoughts were racing through Yemon's head. What he knew about the war, the fact that they wanted to bring him to Aizen, and that he was dead, and that Yachiru was fighting someone that was really strong and could only be a member of Aizen's army.

_She should be fine, she's... She's injured?Shit._

"I get it now. You're arrancar."

"What gave it away?" Mila Rose said in a deadpan, sarcastic voice.

"Give me a break, I have only read about you lot. It's my first time-"

A crash and a flare of reiatsu interrupted the conversation and caught both their attentions. Without losing sight of each other, they both turned to the fight between Yachiru and Harribel.

And they both muttered imprecations under their breaths.

* * *

><p>Tatsuki had taken a lot longer to break out of the Hypnosis than Yachiru or Yemon. She had stood her ground in front of Aizen, feeling a mix of relief and anger, without a trace of fear. But that was the last thing that had happened in her hypnotic world. Aizen and the desert had started waving out of existence, subtly at first, but it hadn't been enough to tear her attention away from him.<p>

Her head was processing that something was wrong. And that very thing stopped her from looking back. She didn't want to look at Orihime.

_What the hell is this? It's not re- No, no, it's got to be a trick, Aizen's trick. How the hell did he survive Yachiru's... No, and Orihime, I'm back to that moment. I'm... No, this isn't Karakura Town, I'm not back to that... Shit, what's going on._

Her head was working itself into knots at a dangerous speed, and as a result she did the only think she could think of to stop the panic settling inside her. She shouted once, and threw a punch at Aizen.

It hit solid wall before it got even close, and the wall she was standing in front of came into view as she punched right through it.

"Shit. It wasn't real. It... Orihime."

She turned quickly, but instead of Orihime she saw a blue-haired woman with weird eyes charging right at her. Before she could react, something pushed her out of the way, instants before Apacci rushed past her and crashing through the wall.

Tatsuki looked down. She saw a mass of burn orange hair flickering in and out of existence.

"Tatsuki... I miss you..."

"Ori-" She didn't finish, the hypnosis disappeared completely together with the last remnants of Kyōka Suigetsu's power, and the vision of Orihime was gone forever.

Tatsuki screamed in frustration. But the reappearance of Apacci quickly brought her back to her senses.

"What are you screaming for you stupid bitch?"

Apacci lunged at Tatsuki as she was laying on the floor, aiming for her right leg. She rolled out of the way of the attack, and in the same movement jumped up to her feet. The part about wearing her brass knuckles hadn't been a dream, at least.

"Who are you? What do you want?"

"Ah?" Apacci made an expression of disgust. "What does it matter to a little insect like you? You better not piss me off, I may forget I'm not supposed to kill you."

Tatsuki furrowed her brow. There was no doubt that woman was very strong, but all she had were her brass knuckles.

_Now would be a great time to test Sandal-hat's invention._

She vaguely remembered dropping it before, when she ran for Orihime. Or looking at herself dropping it. It had all been very strange, but the feeling of detachment from her own body was now gone. She was back in control, and feeling extremely wired.

Their standoff was interrupted by the fight between Yachiru and Harribel. Their reiatsu felt catastrophically oppressive, and just too close for comfort in any case. Apacci's attention wandered off together with her eyes, as if she didn't consider Tatsuki to be of any threat. Tatsuki caught herself before doing the same thing. It was her chance.

_Yachiru... You can do it. Don't let yourself get killed._

Her thoughts were with Yachiru as she rushed out of what was left of the building, but her eyes were only for her guns.

* * *

><p>Harribel's release flooded the battlefield with the thick, cold reiatsu only an Espada could produce. Yachiru watched her getting wrapped with the waves of her transformation without changing her expression, and she was still looking when the blonde-haired arrancar emerged in her released form. Gone were the remains of her mask, together with most of her outfit and all of her wounds. Her right arm was holding a massive Zanpakutō, in the shape of a shark's tooth.<p>

"Oooh, you can heal yourself?" Yachiru said, tilting her head with curiosity.

"It is as you see. This is Aizen-sama's gift to his Espadas."

"Looks fun."

Harribel disappeared out of sight, pushing ahead with an impossibly fast step of Sonido. However, her giant blade was deflected by an upwards swipe of Yachiru's sheathed Zanpakutō. Without missing a beat, she pivoted using the momentum of the deflection to seamlessly switch to another attack, forcing Yachiru to block.

Harribel pressed forward, and Yachiru was pushed back several inches on her feet.

"You intend to fight me without unsheathing?"

"Why not?" Yachiru said, and grinned.

For an answer, Harribel made an upwards thrust with her sword, and kicked Yachiru straight on the stomatch, sending her flying back like a bullet. She crashed through several rocks, blasting dust and gravel in all directions.

"La Gota," Harribel said. She pointed towards the flying Yachiru with her Zanpakutō, and an instant later a blast of water short from the blade, chasing after the pink-haired shinigami at high speed. It was followed by an explosion that shook the whole ground around them, with Yachiru in the middle.

The dust settled quickly, and revealed Yachiru still standing in the middle of the blast area. She was holding her still sheathed Zanpakutō with her right hand in a reverse grip, and looked like she had used it to block the attack. As a result, most of her right sleeve had been torn away, and she had a deep wound across her upper arm and her shoulder.

Harribel walked slowly towards her. "I don't understand you. You looked like a berserk when you were under hypnosis, and now you're just letting me kill you." She raised her sword, holding it horizontally under her face. "I can make it quick if you want. I have no desire to be cruel to you."

Yachiru lowered her Zanpakutō, still not changing her reverse grip. "It's not cruel, we're having fun!"

"Odd. You are very different from all the Shinigami I have fought so far. I do not do this for fun."

"Really? I thought strong ones had fun when they played together..." Yachiru said in a musing voice. She still looked like she was trying to understand Harribel. "Why wouldn't you enjoy fighting when you're so strong?"

"My only objective is to serve Aizen-sama to the best of my abilities. With your two companions, I believe Aizen-sama will finally be able to realize his dream. It is my duty to bring them to him. And you are in the way."

"Aw, that's boring."

Harribel was as close as she wanted to be. Again, she jumped forward with sonido, aiming her oversized shark tooth at Yachiru's chest with a powerful thrust. This time it met Yachiru's unsheathed blade, and a moment later she was forced to block the spinning attack of the sheath with her other hand. With both attacks thus blocked, she didn't have any chance to get out of the way of Yachiru's spinning kick. It landed on her face, and sent her crashing back several meters.

Yachiru pressed forward without pausing. Now it was she who tried to skewer her opponent with her short Zanpakutō, forcing Harribel to step out of the way even before she had regained her footing. She planted her oversized Zanpakutō on the ground to block Yachiru's return attack, jumped out of the way to dodge the next one, and on the third one they deflected each other's swords without hitting anything.

When she landed, Harribel searched inside her mouth with her tongue, and a moment later spit out two broken teeth, together with a mouthful of blood.

"You can't possibly keep this up," Harribel said. "This will be your loss."

"Really?" Yachiru replied. She had recovered her grin, and her question had a touch of childish glee to it. "Does that mean you can show me more tricks?"

Harribel took a moment to answer. She had conserved her calm and composed demeanour, still looking like the fight was only some sort of heavy duty imposed on her she'd rather avoid. She looked at the remains of the Café.

_It's far enough._

"Very well, if that is your wish," the arrancar said. Without any more ceremony, she jumped high in the air and aimed her Zanpakutō at Yachiru. "Cascada."

A rushing surge of water shot from her weapon, but unlike her previous attack, this one kept pouring out for several seconds. The torrent crashed on the ground where Yachiru stood, engulfing her and everything in a hundred meters radius. The pressurized water cut through rock and soil as it landed, digging deep and shaking the ground like an earthquake.

Before she was done with the attack, there was a spike of reiatsu and the waters of her attack parted in the middle. She didn't have time to react and dodge Yachiru's attack. It cut through the water like a scythe, and landed square on her chest, cutting through her left side from her hip to her shoulder. She felt several of her ribs snapping as Yachiru's Zanpakutō cut through them. The blade finally lodged itself on her collarbone, right above her left breast.

She made a wild swipe with her sharktooth blade as she pulled away from Yachiru. She narrowly missed Yachiru's left arm, and instead made a new cut on her abdomen.

They both fell to the ground at the same time.

* * *

><p>"Harribel-sama!"<p>

The cry of the _Tres Bestias _was simultaneous as Mila Rose, Apacci, and Sung-Sun all rushed to the aid of their master, ignoring their opponents completely as they did.

"Mila Rose! Sung-Sun!" Apacci shouted. She was holding her left arm with her right hand, and without a second word, she pulled and tore her left arm from her body.

The other two did the same. They threw the arms forward and past where Harribel had fallen, and even before they hit the ground, they started glowing and coalesced with one another.

"Quimera Parca!" the three of them shouted.

The mass of what had been their own flesh started to glow and twist in mid-air, while a dark, blood-freezing reiatsu started to rise from it.

"Whassthat?" Yachiru's voice came through somewhat weakened as she slowly stood on her feet again. There was no room for doubt on seeing her face, her grin and wide open eyes were dripping not only with blood, but also with bloodlust.

"Go get that bitch, Ayon!" Apacci shouted.

The mass of glowing flesh and reiatsu finally collapsed into a massive, eight meter tall beast. It was humanoid in shape, half its body covered in brown fur with a large, dark brown mane on his head, a deer skull in the center of its face, hooves at the end of its massive legs, and a huge tail shaped like a snake.

"Woooow, lookit that!" Yachiru chirped.

The beast let out a blood-curling roar from its massive mouth, and a moment later it jumped at Yachiru, bringing down its clenched fist with a power that shook the ground when it landed. It did it a second time, a third, it kept pounding and roaring, sending huge chunks or rock flying high in the air.

In the meantime, the three arrancar had reached their master. Harribel was trying to stand up, but had only managed to bring herself up to her knees, using her Zanpakutō as a prop.

"Harribel-sama!" Sung-Sun shouted.

"Stay back," Harribel replied, talking in a low voice between heavy, laboured breaths.

They ignored her. Apacci and Mila-Rose stepped in front of Harribel, looking at Ayon pounce away, while Sung-Sun knelt besides her.

"Harribel-sama, we should run away now, before-"

"No," she started coughing, and grimaced in pain as she did. "No. Take those two. Bring them to Aizen-sama."

"But-"

"Do it."

The short conversation was interrupted by a shout from Yachiru. "WAAAAaaaaaaaaaaah..."

Ayon had grabbed and thrown her away, and there was a disturbing childish glee as she shouted while being flung far through the air.

"What the hell is wrong with that bitch?" Apacci said.

As soon as Yachiru landed, Ayon let out an even mightier roar. He fell forward on all fours, and his reiatsu climbed as a ball of glowing energy appeared in front of his eyes. A second later it fired a massive _Cero_.

"Apacci, Mila Rose, go get those two humans." Sung-Sun said.

"What? Like hell!" Apacci retorted hotly. "I'm not going to leave-"

"Go," Harribel interrupted, in a voice that was almost a whisper.

"But-"

Apacci's voice died as a tremendous reiatsu suddenly fell on them. They turned like one towards where Yachiru was.

She was standing far away where she had taken Ayon's cero on. Most of her shinigami uniform had been burned away, and only a few rags remained on her bloodied, battered body. She had her left side towards Ayon, and despite having a few burns on it, she looked like the cero had had no effect on her.

"Look at what you've done," Yachiru said, looking at her left arm. "Now I've lost Ken-chan's present!"

They didn't manage to follow what had happened next with their eyes. Yachiru was standing at a distance, while Ayon was charging towards her. An eye blink later Yachiru was only a few meters away from them, and Ayon was exploding into a mass of torn flesh and blood.

She turned towards the arrancar. Her step was very uneasy, and she could barely keep upright. Nonetheless, her gaze froze the _Tres Bestias_ in place.

"Muda," Sung-Sun said. As soon as she did, her whole skin tore away from her body, and wrapped itself around them like a cocoon. Like a mirage, they disappeared in an instant, not even their reiatsu could be felt.

* * *

><p>"Yachiru!" Yemon shouted, getting out of cover and running towards the pink-haired girl. The change of the battle had been so sudden, neither him nor Tatsuki had gotten a chance to do much other than watch.<p>

Tatsuki followed close behind, carrying the plasma rifle. "Where did they go?"

"I don't know, I can't feel their reiatsu at all. Yachiru!"

Tatsuki looked around as she chased after Yemon. It didn't make any sense, those four were very strong, and now she couldn't feel anything either.

_This doesn't make sense. Did they ran away, or... did they hypnotize us again? Shit, I don't like this._

Like an answer to her doubts, she felt someone appear out of nowhere behind her. She tried to turn and look over her shoulder as she run, and saw Apacci behind her.

_Where the fuck did she come from?_

The arrancar had something that looked like a chakram in her hand, and was making a swipe at her. Her pulse accelerated and everything slowed down in her eyes, but there was no way she could dodge that attack. Apacci was aiming low, right at her legs.

There was a blast of light as one of Yemon's arrows hit Apacci's arm, deflecting the attack and allowing Tatsuki to narrowly dodge it.

_Crap!_

"Watch o-"

Tatsuki's warning was for naught. Like Apacci had done, Mila Rose also came out of nowhere and appeared next to Yemon, swinging her broadsword as she did, and coming down at Yemon's outstretched bow arm. Yemon hadn't even noticed until the sword came into his field of vision.

***Wham***

The cut never came. Neither Yemon nor Tatsuki could make heads nor tails of what happened. Instead of cutting Yemon's arm, Mila Rose found her face at the business end of a boot. Attached to that boot... It happened so fast neither of them got to see who owned it. All Yemon saw was a blur of grey clothes, a longcoat, and a fedora. An instant later the image was gone, together with the top half of Mila Rose's head.

Yemon was left petrified in place, unable to process what had happened while bits of blood and gore from Mila Rose fell on him.

"Mila Rose!" Apacci shouted.

The shout spurred Tatsuki into action. She had fallen on her back as she turned while still running, and now, from the ground, she had a good chance to take a shot at Apacci. Without standing up, she brought her plasma rifle up and, almost wildly, repeatedly pressed the trigger.

She was surprised by how little noise the rifle made. A hiss, a crackling while energy accumulated at the end of the three-pronged claw of the muzzle, and a second, louder hiss when it was shot. Apacci was so fixated on Mila Rose that she never saw it coming, and it hit her on the chest.

"AAAAAARGH!" She screamed in pain and fell on her back while the ball of plasma burned a hole inside her chest. The smell of burned flesh wafted through the air, making Tatsuki's stomach turn. She scrambled to her feet while Apacci clawed at the ground in agony.

Tatsuki pressed the trigger again, but nothing happened. She looked at the dials, and saw that the gauge claimed it still had ammo. There was a blinking red light instead, but the writing next to it was illegible. "Come on, come on, come on!"

Apacci looked up as the worst of the pain started to recede, and gritted her teeth in anger. "YOU FUCKING BITCH!" she shouted, scrambling to her feet as she launched herself forward. Yemon finally reacted and raised his arm to try and shoot her, but Tatsuki's rifle came back to life.

Her second shot was a complete fluke, but it hit Apacci in the eye as she tried to dodge. She was pushed back by the blast as she screamed in agony. Soon her scream became a gurgle, when the energy from the shot started to burn through her body. Her entire body looked like it got engulfed by the energy of the blast, and as she fell on her knees, the remaining flesh melted away from her bones and turned into a puddle of goo. With a final, agonizing whimper, the last of her flesh fell apart, and with it her bones, dropping into a goo-covered pile on the ground.

All the while, Tatsuki looked at her enemy dissolve away with a horrified expression of shock. Neither she, nor Yemon, said anything for several seconds, until the latter's gaze fell on Yachiru.

"Yachiru!" he shouted, rushing to the pink-haired shinigami's aid. She had fallen on the ground, and wasn't moving.

"Be careful! There's two more!" Tatsuki shouted.

"Yes," Sung-Sun's voice came from behind her, "yes there are."

Tatsuki turned and started shooting even before seeing what was there. The ball of plasma hit her opponent square in the chest, but as it burned away, Tatsuki realized it was just an empty skin.

An instant later, a searing pain shot from her shoulder as Sung-Sun stabbed her through with her short sai-shaped Zanpakutō. She screamed in pain and dropped her plasma rifle.

"Tatsuki!" Yemon shouted. He skidded to a stop and called forth his bow, but refrained from shooting when he saw Sung-Sun. She had transformed, with her lower half turned into a snake's body, and she had coiled the body around Tatsuki. From where he was, he couldn't get a clear shot, she was holding her Zanpakutō through Tatsuki's shoulder and had her face next to Tatsuki's ear.

"Don't move," Sung-sun said, twisting the sai and getting a scream of pain from Tatsuki. "You're mine. If it wasn't for Harribel-sama's orders I'd-"

Before she finished the phrase, a grey, growling mass of fur jumped on her arm. Dogmeat let out a sound a mix of a bark and a growl, and chomped on Sung-Sun's arm as ferociously as he could. Sung-Sun screamed, and was forced to let go of her sai.

Yemon seized the chance. He rushed forward with Hyrenkyaku and appeared right on top of Sung-Sun. He was carrying the plasma rifle.

_There's no way my bow can hurt her. This..._

With her body coiled around Tatsuki and Dogmeat on her only remaining arm, she couldn't do anything to stop the shot. It hit her on the neck, and exploded. It took the best part of her throat with it.

Dogmeat let go as she fell backwards, and started to pull with his teeth at the snake body holding Tatsuki. It was unnecessary, Sung-Sun could hardly move, and all she was doing was trying to crawl away.

"Harribel... sama..." she muttered, clawing weakly at the ground. On every move she barely managed to advance a fraction of an inch at a time.

Yemon looked in the direction Sung-Sun was trying to go. Not far from where they were, the blond arrancar way laying in a pool of blood. She wasn't moving at all. Shortly afterwards, neither was Sung-Sun.

"Tatsuki, are you okay?"

"Ugh," she muttered, standing up and stepping away from the coiled snake body with Yemon's help. "Fuck this hurts."

"Hold on, I'll-"

"Forget it, go help Yachiru!" Tatsuki replied, shaking Yemon's hand from her shoulder.

Yemon looked at Yachiru on the ground, at Tatsuki, and after a muttered curse, nodded and ran towards their fallen companion.

"Sheesh." She looked down at Dogmeat, who was looking at her with lowered ears and a worried expression. "What took you so long, you mutt?" she said, and grinned at Dogmeat's barking reply. "You have great timing, you know that?"

Tatsuki followed Yemon slowly, and sat down on her knees next to him and next to Yachiru. Yemon was frantically working on her wounds, and had scattered the contents of his pack far and wide in his haste to help her.

She looked at the plasma rifle on the ground and suppressed a shudder.

_What the hell did Sandal-hat make? Actually, nevermind this thing, who the hell was that with the fedora?_

"Yachiru, why didn't you take that thing off your arm when the fight started?" Yemon said, working desperately on the numerous wounds. The stab through her stomach worried him the most, but she had several deep cuts all over her body too.

_Shit, she looks like she'll fall apart if I move her._

"What thing?" Yachiru muttered.

"That thing that eats up your reiatsu." Yemon continued applying bandages. "Relax, this may hurt a bit..."

"Iss fine," she continued, suppressing a gasp when Yemon tightened a bandage. "Twas so much fun... I gots to play with Ken-chan..."

_What? She... Oh shit, that's right._

"It wasn't real, you know," Yemon said, stuffing a fistful of gauzes in one of the deeper cuts. "Kenpachi..."

"I know," Yachiru said, and took a deep breath that was cut short by a small gesture of pain. "I know."

"Just relax, I'll have you patched up in no time."

Yemon continued to work on Yachiru without saying anything. He had thrown his pack open with such alacrity that the contents had spilled far and wide. The bandages and first aid supplies he had taken from Urahara's Vault were a bit strange, nothing like the ones he had carried out of his vault; for some reason, they seemed as if they were made for healing Shinigami.

_Not surprising, but..._

"Yemon," Tatsuki said, interrupting his thoughts.

"What is it?" He looked up, and stopped short when he saw Tatsuki holding the sai that had been embedded in her shoulder. He paused his work with Yachiru only to give Tatsuki a pack of gauzes and push her to the ground. "Keep the pressure up, it's not too bad but you'll lose blood."

"Thanks."

Yemon resumed his work on Yachiru. Soon, Tatsuki interrupted again.

"Yemon, who the hell was that? With the fedora."

"Beats me. Sure saved my butt though."

"I didn't feel anything at all when he appeared. You?"

"To be honest, I was too gobsmacked to pay attention."

Tatsuki chuckled.

"Yachiru, does this hurt?" Yemon said. After waiting and getting no answer, he shook her shoulder and insisted. "Yachiru! Can you hear me?"

"Hmmmm, whassit Kurochi..."

"Talk to me, don't fall asleep!"

"Just a little..."

Yemon muttered several imprecations and redoubled the speed of his work. "Tatsuki, I have to get Yachiru some help. Can you walk? We have to get to the Hub as soon as possible."

"I'm fine, just go."

"But-"

"You can get there faster with shunpo, can't you?"

"It's not ca- Bah, nevermind." He turned to take a look at Tatsuki. She appeared fairly calm, holding her hand on her wound very firmly. "Are you sure you're okay? You're not just-"

"Shut up and go already! Sheesh."

Yemon sighed unhappily.

_Goddammit, I have no choice._

He left with Yachiru on his back, and a promise to return before the end of the day.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>Yep, of all the things Yemon could have done, he went and picked the Mysterious Stranger perk. Also, I hate when my characters decide to split the party (ask any GM who has his party of players split in the middle of the roleplaying adventure, he'll agree with me). It makes it hard to follow what's going on. I ended up putting bars between scenes to make transitions clearer.

Blackout1170: Aha, common point of confusion, that _is_ the original plasma rifle! In Fallout 1 and 2 that is. When 3 and New Vegas came along, for some reason they decided to change what the Plasma Rifle was, and reintroduce the old model as the Plasma Caster :)

As far as explaining it to Yemon, that would indeed be quite the conversation! I'm not even sure there's anyone alive who'll properly remember who she is :D

And typo corrected, thanks!


	24. An Old Friend

"What though the sea with waues continuall  
>Doe eate the earth, it is no more at all:<br>Ne is the earth the lesse, or loseth ought,  
>For whatsoeuer from one place doth fall,<br>Is with the tide vnto an other brought:  
>For there is nothing lost, that may be found, if sought."<p>

- **Edmund Spenser,**_The Faerie Queene _

* * *

><p>Yemon couldn't feel his legs. It was an improvement over the pain and the fatigue, and allowed him to keep on running. Jogging, perhaps, he was too tired to really run. It was mid-afternoon, he was drenched in sweat, blood, and on his back, Yachiru was completely silent. She had stopped talking hours ago, and scared the hell out of Yemon. But when he stopped to check, he saw she was still breathing.<p>

_Dammit all, why didn't you go all out from the start of the fight?_

He had finished counting to one hundred. It was all he allowed himself to pause. He took a deep breath, and resumed his Hyrenkyaku jumps.

The pain returned, together with the fire in his lungs. It was even worse than when he had carried Tatsuki to Shady Sands. He only had had to use Hyrenkyaku for a short while, and fatigue had taken everything out of him. It was different now, he could take much more (and how surprised he was at that), and the constant flow of reiatsu felt like the flesh was about to be torn from his bones.

"Yachiru..." he said, in between desperate, deep breaths. "we're... almost there... Hang on."

Still no answer. The idea of stopping to check her condition crossed his mind, but he knew it was just an excuse to stop running and end the pain.

The Hub came into view in the distance. He continued pushing forward undeterred, but the image didn't go away. It wasn't his imagination this time.

He sped up. No reason to leave anything in the tank anymore. The wasteland became a blur around him. The voices of the shinigami guards, the wastelanders, the caravan traders, they all became an unintelligible echo as he rushed through. With a final, ambitious jump, he landed skidding to a stop in front of the shack that hid the entrance to Vault 8. Two shinigami were standing guard in front of the large, heavy door. One of them was tall and heavy set, with a square face, big eyes and nose, short black hair, and sporting a bad shave. The other was quite thin, with sunken cheeks, squinting narrow eyes, a pointy nose, and long black hair held in a dirty ponytail on the back of his head.

"Hey!" the thin guards shouted as he landed. "What the hell, don't rush in like that! You co-"

"Ise-san!" Yemon shouted. He coughed and spluttered, breathing so fast he could hardly speak. "Quick... it's... emergency... help."

The guards looked at each other, at the vault dweller, the badly wounded and heavily bandaged Shinigami on her back, and the thin one finally rushed inside, while the other went to help Yemon.

The young man allowed himself to be helped to his feet, but shook the Shinigami off when he reached for Yachiru. He was still breathing very heavily, and his legs were trembling with pain and fatigue.

"What happened?" the shinigami said.

"Lots..." Yemon started walking towards the entrance. "Where... Infirmary..."

"Come on, follow me."

The Shinigami led the stumbling Yemon down the flight of stairs to the entrance to the Vault, steadying him once when he stumbled near the bottom. Yemon refused to let go of Yachiru again, and followed through the corridor opposite to the lift. The last door was the entrance to the infirmary; it was a surprisingly large room, with six beds arranged along tho opposite walls and separated by curtains, shelves of neatly stacked medical supplies and equipment, and immaculate surfaces. There was a faint smell of bleach and alcohol disinfectant in the air.

He hadn't taken two steps before a commotion came rushing through the corridor. A group of shinigami rushed into the infirmary with Nanao at the head.

"What's- Yachiru!"

Nanao's voice had an immediate effect on Yemon. He had been picturing the Vault as his target as he pushed ahead through the wasteland, visualizing the goal to have some hope of arriving on time. And now that he heard that voice, he realized he had arrived at his goal. And all his energy left his body. His legs bucked under him, and he'd have fallen if several strong arms hadn't rushed to his support.

Meanwhile, Nano was barking orders. "Ayaka, get transfusions ready." A short, blonde-haired woman quickly left the room through the back door. "Mai, Kyo, over here." A tall woman with a curvaceous figure, narrow face, and braided hair, and a broad-shouldered man with a square face and a large scar over his left eye followed Nanao to help with Yachiru. "Get him to that bed and get him cleaned up. Lively now!"

Yemon didn't struggle this time when Yachiru was taken off his shoulders, but started to resist when two pairs of strong arms dragged him back. "No. I have to... Tatsuki... I have... T-Urgh-" As soon as he was lifted off the ground and put on one of the beds, he felt his stomach turning, and a moment later he was bending down retching. As if they had been expecting it, he had a vomit pan in front of his face when he did.

"How is he?" Nanao said, not looking up as they cut the remaining rags off Yachiru's body and peeled off bandages.

"I don't think he's hurt," one of the male Shinigami holding Yemon said. "Severe dehydration though."

"I-Urgh-" Yemon retched again, still trying to paw away the arms holding him. "Tats-Urgh."

"Stop trying to talk until you're done!" Nanao shouted. "Seiji, put a team together, search and rescue. Go!"

The man, a shinigami of medium build, with brown hair parted in the middle, a round face wth a sharp chin, and narrow, squinty eyes, nodded once and left in a hurry. Soon Yemon had finished throwing up. He had little in his stomach, but the nauseous feeling was overwhelming. He tried to stand up. "I have to help Tatsuki..." he muttered.

"Kurosaki-san!" Nanao shouted, and huffed exasperated.

"I'm back ma'am!" the short woman shouted as she rushed back inside the room, pushing a trolley loaded with medical equipment.

"Good, over here," Nanao said, and stepped back. A moment later she was next to Yemon. "Kurosaki-san, where are Zaraki-san and Arisawa-san? What happened? Are they in danger?"

"They're... There's this place... Kenpachi is dead."

A hush fell across the room, and Yemon managed to open his eyes enough to look at Nanao. She looked so flabbergasted it was as if she hadn't understood the words.

"What could have possibly..." Nanao started to say, with her voice trailing off.

"Aizen," Yemon said.

A loud crash broke the silence, the sound of the equipment Ayaka was trying to set up until her hands lost all their strength on hearing the news. Nanao herself looked like all the blood had been drained from her face. Nobody could say a word.

"He's dead. Yachiru killed... It's safe, they're all dead. Tatsuki..."

While Yemon rambled, Nanao looked around and clapped her hands loudly. "Lively! Don't just stand there!" She put her hand on Yemon's chest, holding him down. "We're going to find her. Where is she? Is she in danger?"

"She's... No. She's hurt. I had to come for Yachiru. I have to go back. I have to-"

"You're in no condition to go anywhere! Where is Arisawa-san?"

The sounds of a troop marching down towards them became louder and louder, until Seiji walked in, leaving the rest of his team outside. "Lieutenant, we're ready! Where are we going?"

"Kurosaki-san?" Nanao called.

"I'm... Ugh, it's here." He struggled to raise his left arm, and fiddled with the Pip-boy until the overhead map appeared onscreen. He had placed a marker where the Café used to be. "It's there. I'll go."

Yemon felt a drop of something hit his forehead, and that was all he remembered.

"Lieutenant..." Seiji muttered, while Nanao closed a bottle containing some green liquid.

"Just some Shinten. Get him a drip and keep him sedated, or he'll just be trouble. Seiji, you know where to go."

The Shinigami looked at the map on Yemon's Pip-boy and pulled a folded piece of paper from inside his Shihakushō. "I think I got it. What is out there?"

"We don't know. Be careful, and come back safely."

Seiji grinned once, and snapped to attention. "Yes Ma'am!" he said, and fled the room followed by his team.

When Yemon opened his eyes he felt parched. He made a raspy cough that only made his throat feel worse, and blinked until his eyes opened under the artificial lights of the vault. It was a familiar glow, one his eyes could quickly become accustomed to. He looked around, and found that the infirmary only held him and Yachiru, with Nanao sitting next to the pink-haired Shinigami. Her left hand was grasping her right wrist, and her right hand was facing palm forward towards a small glowing sphere of reiatsu hovering over Yachiru.

"Awake?" Nanao said, not looking away from Yachiru.

Looking at her face, Yemon thought she appeared quite tired. Again.

"Ugh. Can I get a drink?"

"By your bed. Careful with the drip."

Yemon looked up and realized there was a drip attached to his right arm. He fumbled around with his left until he grabbed a large drinking bottle on the bedside table, and gave it a tentative sip. It was hard to swallow, even though the liquid inside was sweet and refreshing.

He nearly dropped the bottle when his brain started to function properly. "Ah! Tatsuki! What- Ouch!" He pulled his arm back and grabbed his right arm, holding at the drip puncture.

"I told you to be careful," Nanao said, speaking in a tired voice. "We found Arisawa-san. She's fine, her wounds weren't bad."

"Thank goodness," Yemon said, falling back on his bed with a relieved sigh. "Where is she?"

"She went topside as soon as we treated her." Nanao shook her head. "She does seem to dislike the Vault."

While Nanao talked, Yemon sat up and slowly tried to get out of bed. He pulled the needle of the drip out, and let his legs dangle down when he moved to sit at the edge of the bed. They hurt like hell, and he saw his lower legs were bound tightly with bandages. For the first time he noticed he was only wearing a light robe.

"It's not a good idea to move yet," Nanao said.

"How long have I been out? Ugh, my head hurts."

"Since yesterday evening."

"Since... Wha-?"

"I gave you a sedative," Nanao said, interrupting Yemon by correctly guessing the source of his confusion. "You were going hysterical."

Yemon didn't say anything. He dropped down to ground and, biting his lower lip due to the pain, walked slowly towards Nanao and Yachiru. The pink-haired Shinigami looked asleep, and was covered in fresh bandages much like the ones he had taken from Urahara's vault.

"How is she?"

Nanao sighed. "Stable. For now. It's going to take a while."

"Huh?"

She looked up at Yemon. "Do you not know how healing kidō works?"

"I... don't think I do, no."

"It replenishes the patient's reiatsu, and then uses both the patient's and the healer's power to restore the body. With Yachiru's reiatsu..." Nanao smiled ruefully, "I'll have to be here a while."

"I see. What's with these odd bandages? We got some from Urahara's vault too, I wasn't sure if I was supposed to use them as normal bandages or what."

"You were indeed using them wrong. While the resemblance with a living body is obvious, the way to heal a spirit is quite different." She looked at Yemon and nodded. "Do not worry, I will instruct you in their proper use later."

"Oh. Okay. Thanks." Yemon hesitated. After a pregnant pause, he continued awkwardly. "I suppose you want to know what happened?"

"Arisawa-san explained everything." She looked down at Yachiru, and her expression hardened. "I was only thinking of Kurotsuchi Mayuri, I never thought I'd stir up something like this..."

"Well, I don't know. Aizen... I'm still having a hard time just wrapping my head around that. He was so strong, but he really looked in a bad way. And between Kenpachi and Yachiru they finished him off. It's just... I don't know, I just wish I hadn't gotten the real Karakura's location out of Tatsuki. It's probably a good thing he's gone now, though, but..."

Nanao didn't answer, or interrupt Yemon's confused tirade. After a while, Yemon sighed and attempted a stretch. It was painful, but relieving.

"Any chance I could get my clothes back?"

"I said not to move. I'm surprised you can even stand after pushing your shunpo enough to hurt your legs like that."

"It's not called... Ah whatever. Yeah. Well, I want to speak with Tatsuki. And I don't think she'll come down here."

After a few seconds, Nanao nodded. "You're right, she probably won't. We have prepared a room, you will find your things inside. The same where I put them last time, while you were..."

She gestured up with her head, and Yemon nodded in understanding. The same room he had left his gear when he spent a night in jail. It should have been a week. He wished he had stayed locked in instead of what had happened since then.

"Oh right, our gear. We had a bunch of holodisks for you." Yemon's voice took a tint of venom as he continued. "That Kurotsuchi character is a real piece of work, the kind of shit he had going at the Boneyard is sickening."

"Arisawa-san mentioned it. Ferro-san is going through the disks, he's in charge of the library now."

Yemon was about to turn around when Nanao said that, and he stopped dead on his tracks. He looked at the Lieutenant and smirked.

"Delegating?" he said.

She didn't say anything back. She just gave him a look that made him glad she had both hands occupied and couldn't take her glasses off. Yemon raised his hands in a mock surrender gesture, and shuffled out of the room as fast as his pained legs allowed him.

Walking around a Vault made him feel at incredible ease. For a moment he almost forgot about all the events that had taken him to that place. He stepped along the clean, cold polished floor with bare feet, heard the faint humming of the ventilation and the underground machinery, and it felt just like home.

The image of Maya holding him tightly and telling him about the Vault came to his head, but he quickly discarded it.

_Whatever that was, it wasn't real._

Even with his slow, pained pace, it took him less than half a minute to find the room; it was on the same level the infirmary was. The door slid open with only the barest of noises, and he stepped in carefully. All their gear was piled up in a corner, including Yachiru's bag of explosives and the absolutely terrifying plasma rifle from Urahara's vault. He made quick stock of their few belongings, and missed only the 10mm handgun and the railway rifle.

_I guess Tatsuki's carrying those._

There were two beds in the room. Despite their tempting offer of rest, he ignored them and just got changed into a standard Shinigami Shihakushō, which he found in the locker by one of the beds. It didn't feel right without the yellow 14 on his back, but it'd have to do. He didn't bother picking his knife or anything else. He didn't feel like carrying weight at all.

He thought about stopping at the library before leaving, but decided not to waste any more time. He left the Vault grimacing both in pain and in dislike of the bright light outside. He hadn't taken three steps when a familiar voice called him. A familiar barking, rather.

"Well, Dogmeat!" Yemon called, bending down to scratch the excited mutt behind the ears. "You're doing okay then, that's a good boy. Wher- Ouch!"

Yemon yelped in pain when the excited dog tried to jump up at him and hit his bandaged legs. Dogmeat took a surprised step back and then approached slowly, sniffing Yemon's legs with a worried whine.

"It's okay boy, don't worry," Yemon said. "Where's Tatsuki? Is she where I think she is?"

Dogmeat tilted his head as he listened, and turned towards the Maltese Falcon when Yemon finished talking. He then looked at Yemon and wagged his tail.

"Figures. Go keep an eye on her, I have to go check the caravans. I'll be there in a minute, okay?"

Dogmeat barked, wagging his tail excitedly, and turned to leg it down the street towards the Maltese Falcon. Yemon looked at the grey mutt go, smiled, and turned his steps towards the north end of the Hub, where the caravan offices were.

Much of the life at the Hub passed through the rooms, seats, and gambling tables of the Maltese Falcon. It was a reasonably lively day: the craps and roulette had a good number of customers, the girls were making the liquor flow and the rooms get used, and the background hubbub was rather loud too.

At the end of the main counter was a girl with black hair and bright orange overshirt, sitting on a tall stool, one elbow on the counter and holding her head up with a bored expression. Her other hand playing with a glass of liquor. Next to her was a practically untouched bottle.

Two or three of the male customers had tried their luck with her, but hadn't gotten too far. The large and rather unfriendly mutt laying on the ground next to the stool didn't help matters much.

"Tatsuki, there you are," Yemon's voice came from the entrance, loud and clear with a high note of enthusiasm in it.

She didn't reply, or move one bit. Dogmeat perked up and wagged his tail, but didn't leave Tatsuki's side.

"Are you okay?" Yemon said when he reached her side.

"Fine," Tatsuki said, half-smiling in a rather strange way.

Yemon looked at the nearly full bottle and the loaded glass Tatsuki kept twirling on the counter, and furrowed his brow. _I don't think she's even touched it, that's odd. _He shook his head. "Listen, do you have any caps? I've got- Woah."

Without even listening to the rest, Tatsuki brought up her bag of caps and dropped it on the counter. Yemon looked at her and hesitated, but a moment later he shook his head again and grabbed the bag. There wasn't much left inside, about three hundred caps perhaps, and some spare .32 and shotgun ammo. He took a handful of caps, put them on the counter in front of Tatsuki and closed the bag.

"I'll be right back, okay?" He put his hand on Tatsuki's shoulder, and gave a very gentle squeeze, trying to to hurt her. Tatsuki smiled again in the same strange, almost rueful way, and shook her head without a word.

_Well, this should cheer her up at least._

A short walk later he made it back into the Crimson Caravan offices again. A decrepit building on the north side of the Hub, the main room which served as main office had a large, surprisingly solid desk in the middle, and piles of old papers piled on the shelves along the walls. Demetre, the corpulent, leather jacket-wearing man that was head of the caravan, looked up at him and smirked. Keri Lee, his very attractive, dark skinned, and green haired daughter, frowned. She always frowned.

"There's a small problem," Yemon said.

"Typical," Keri retorted dryly.

"Well, this is all we've got at the moment," Yemon continued, doing his best to ignore her and talk to Demetre. He dropped the bag of caps on the table, and Keri took a quick look.

"That's not even half of what we agreed," she said.

Demetre looked at his daughter, then at Yemon, and shrugged.

_So that's it, she's the one running this show._ Yemon thought.

"I know. Shit happened." Yemon paused, but Keri didn't even blink. "Can't we work something out? Say, how much do you pay for guard duty with the caravans?"

"_You_ want to work as a guard?" Keri said, with a voice that dripped disdain. She looked at Demetre, who eyed Yemon with more interest now.

"Yeah."

"Pay's six hundred, but even with that it's not enough to cover-" Keri said, but Yemon interrupted.

"Two of us, actually. And a dog."

"A dog," she said in a deadpan tone.

"Uh-huh," Yemon nodded.

"Look, if you want to get yourself killed that's fine," Keri said, ignoring the dog remark. "But giving you an advance is out of the question."

"Really," Yemon said, and his tone was deceptively terse. He was starting to get annoyed. "What makes you think I'll get killed. You been in guard duty yourself?"

"Sure have. Who do you think built this company from the ground up?" She gestured at Demetre and herself.

"Want to try me then?"

Keri laughed, and the high pitched ridicule in her voice grated in Yemon's ears like nails on a chalkboard.

_Fuck this._

The Pip-boy started croaking, and his reiatsu surged, dropping spiritual pressure all around him. White energy flared around the Quincy symbol hanging from his left wrist.

Keri's laughter died in her lips. Demetre edged himself closer to his daughter, with his hand resting on his holstered gun. Yemon leaned forward and planted both hands on the desk.

"Listen. I know we agreed on the reward, I gave the advance, and now this much." He pointed a the bag of caps. "If we guard your goddamn caravan, it'll be the safest fucking caravan in the history of the fucking wasteland. Two of us and a dog. With that pay, it'll be more than enough to cover our agreement. Deal?"

All sound merged into a tense silence, until Demetre started to laugh and broke it. It was a merry, satisfied laugh.

"Hah! Look at that," he said, in his usual loud, booming voice. He let go of his gun. "I was thinking you don't look very strong at all, but hell, if you've survived out here you couldn't be that bad. Seems I was right!"

Demetre's reaction was so heartfelt that Yemon couldn't help but start laughing himself. He let his reiatsu drop and stood back again, away from the desk. Keri looked at both laughing men with an annoyed frown, but didn't give any complaints.

"Okay then, it's a deal. We've got a Caravan leaving in two days to the Brotherhood of Steel base," Demetre said. "Two guards and a dog," he added, chuckling, "and we keep your pay."

"Good deal," Yemon replied, smirking. He pushed the bag of caps forward, grabbed the folded paper Demetre handed him and, after a small bow, left the office clutching the paper tightly and smiling.

Upon his return to the Maltese Falcon, Yemon found Tatsuki still sitting on the same stool, with the same glass of liquor still as full, and with the same lost gaze as she distractedly spun the glass on the counter.

"I'm back, missed me?" Yemon said, but got no reply. "Tatsuki. What's wrong?"

She smirked and shook her head. "I'm alive," she said in a flat tone.

"Of course you are!" Yemon replied, talking sharply in his surprise. "Why the hell wouldn't you be?"

"Why..." she chuckled. "Did you see anything back then? At the Café?" she said, still not looking at Yemon.

"Yes. I... It was kinda weird. I saw Maya, thought she had been trapped in there. Turns out it was just fake, like Yachiru fighting Kenpachi."

"Hm-mhm," Tatsuki mumbled, nodding.

There were several things Yemon wanted to ask. Tatsuki's reaction looked like she knew something, but he was more worried about her attitude. She reminded him of how she was the first time he met her. She wasn't as lifeless as back then, but she looked like she had given up on something.

After waiting fruitlessly, Yemon prompted her. "What did you see?"

"Orihime. Standing right there. Didn't see her face, she never looked at me. And then Aizen showed up, she was going to kill her."

"Aizen? But-" Yemon clamped up before finishing the phrase. It was obvious Tatsuki knew Aizen had been destroyed. And her friend Orihime too. And yet, he remembered how distressingly real Maya had felt in his own illusion.

"I swear it Yemon, I stood up and rushed to protect her. I was going to get killed. But I bloody stood up for Orihime this time." She stroked her hair, and chuckled once without mirth when she, once again, failed to find her hairclips. "It was all bullshit. And then Orihime was the one who saved me."

"Saved you? How come?"

"She pushed me out of the way when that bitch with the coloured eyes came at me. Tsk, I'm so fucking useless."

Tatsuki raised her glass, but stopped halfway though and seemed to think better of it. She put it down on the counter again.

"How are you useless? You killed her and then-"

"I lost her," Tatsuki interrupted. "I lost Orihime."

"Well..." Yemon waited for a moment, and then offered Tatsuki his closed fist. "Maybe these will make you feel better."

He opened his hand. When Tatsuki looked, she took a sharp breath in and her eyes opened wide as plates. Yemon was holding a half-folded piece of paper, and in the fold there was a pair of familiar shiny hairclips, blue and shaped like six-petal flowers. She snatched them from Yemon's hand and held them mere inches from her eyes, as if her brain was rejecting what her eyes were telling her. Her hands started to tremble.

"Yeah. Remember what you told me about scavengers finding everything in the wasteland? I talked with the caravan guy when we got to Junktown, and he told me they trade with scavengers a lot. So I gave him some caps, and told him I'll give them a bigger reward if they found them. I guess you were right about scavengers, huh? Tatsuki?"

Tatsuki was now clutching the hairclips tightly and holding her fist on her mouth. She closed her eyes as a small trail of tears escaped from them. She felt almost like those hairclips were as happy to be reunited with her as she was to have them back.

"You... you gave me Orihime back..." she said, speaking in a very thin voice.

Yemon reached out and embraced Tatsuki. After a few seconds, and completely by surprise, Tatsuki jumped up and caught Yemon in the chin with her head. Like she hadn't even noticed, she turned to the bar and slammed her hand on the counter.

"Bartender! Another glass!" She was smiling widely, and turned to Yemon while she secured her hairclips to the usual place on her hair. "Thank you! Thank you so- What's wrong?"

Yemon was holding his chin with both hands while muttering something unintelligible. The bartender brought the glass Tatsuki had asked for, and she quickly started filling it. She grabbed hers and offered the other to Yemon, while wearing the biggest smile Yemon had seen on her.

"Bloody hell Tatsuki, that hurt."

"Eh-hehe, sorry. Come on, here!" she ordered, pushing the glass to Yemon's face. As soon as he took it, she stroke the hairclips satisfied and raised her glass. "To our friends! That we'll never forget! To Orihime! And Ichigo!"

Yemon smiled and raised his glass. "And to grandpa, and Kenpachi."

"And all of them!" Tatsuki finished, and emptied her glass in a mighty gulp.

Yemon imitated her, but unlike the satisfied sigh Tatsuki gave after finishing hers, he coughed and spluttered, and nearly fell off his stool. It was worse than he ever remembered.

_Why the hell am I doing this again?_

"Hah! Come on, harden up!" Tatsuki said, refilling the glasses.

They were about the last ones to leave the Maltese Falcon that day. There were empty bottles, loud songs, near-scuffles, and Yemon was introduced to the wonders of spiri-cola. He thought he was about to have a heart attack in three different occasions, but it somehow made the awful distilled horror they served at the Falcon a little bit more bearable.

They struggled to stay on their feet as they walked. Tatsuki was doing most of the up-righting as they made it down the street.

"You're shucha light weight," Tatsuki said, holding Yemon's arm over her shoulders.

"It'sa that shtuff cola that did it," Yemon said.

"Yeah, yeah, shure ish- Hic!" She hiccuped and stumbled, and it nearly ended with both of them sprawled on the ground. After regaining their footing and taking a few more steps, Tatsuki stopped. "Wheresh we goin'?"

"We've gotta bed in tha vault," Yemon replied, and started walking.

Tatsuki stopped him. "I'ma not gonna go'n the vault."

"Come on, harden up!" Yemon said loudly, and broke out laughing. When Tatsuki refused to bulge, Yemon took her by surprise by bending down and picking her up, throwing her over his shoulder; a manoeuvre that nearly ended with both of them sprawled the ground. "Lessa go!"

"Wha? Yemon! Leggo! Fuck that, I'm not gonna in there! Yemon!"

Yemon didn't comply, so as soon as they were by the nearest corner, Tatsuki threw herself back and grabbed the corner of the building. With the added leverage, she wrapped her legs around Yemon's chest as best she could, and twisted hard to end with both of them sprawled on the ground.

***WHAM!***

"Awww, shhhit. Fuck'sh sake, that hurt. Yemon, shtop it, I'm not-" She stopped talking when she saw Yemon was laying on the ground and not moving. "Yemon! Shhhhit." She struggled to her feet, and stumbled towards Yemon, dropping to his knees by him. His head had banged against the decrepit wall of the building, and he was groaning. "Yemon! Come on, wake up."

"Uuuuuugh... Whatsh happenin'..."

Tatsuki slapped his face repeatedly, until she got a reaction out of him. "Sheesh, come on, let'sh get you down'ere."

Tatsuki struggled to help Yemon to his feet, and they walked down the street with her having to work even harder to keep Yemon walking. The guard at the entrance to the Vault gave them a curious look, but didn't say a word as they staggered going down the stairs.

"Where wash the room?" Tatsuki said loudly. She started walking down one of the corridors, then thought better of it and turned around, still carrying Yemon.

"What in the world are you two doing?"

Tatsuki stopped her wandering and looked back at the origin of the voice. Despite the late hour, Nanao was still up and wandering the halls of her vault. She looked exhausted, with dark circles around her eyes, and dishevelled clothes and hair.

"Aaaah, Ishe-shan, where'sh- Hic! Where'sh our room?" Tatsuki said.

"Wh... Drunk. You two are drunk off your socks aren't you?"

"I kinda hit Yemon'n the head, shoooo, where'sh the room?"

Nanao looked as she hadn't even registered what Tatsuki had just said. "What a fine display. You two-"

"Come oooon," Tatsuki interrupted, reaching for Nanao with one hand, "don't be like that, jusht a little fun won't hurt, you should've shome drinks with ush next time."

Before Tatsuki could touch her, Nanao produced a small fan and swatted her hand with it.

"Ach-aaay!" Tatsuki complained, pulling back her hand and shaking the pain away. "That's so cold, Nanao-chan!"

Nanao froze in place when she heard that. For a moment she could swear it wasn't that human girl who had said those words, it was a much more familiar voice. A voice she hadn't heard in over a hundred years - at least not outside of her own mind playing tricks on her. She had sounded just like Captain Kyōraku.

"W-W-What did you say?"

"I shaid that's cold. Ugh," Tatsuki complained, struggling under Yemon's weight. "Where'sh the room? Yemon's not too good now."

The wide-eyed, open-mouthed Nanao raised her arm to point down one of the corridors, and Tatsuki gave a cordial "thanks" before disappearing down it with Yemon in tow.

She stumbled into the room, took a couple of steps in the dark, and finally dumped Yemon on one of the beds.

"Sheesh, you'sh heavy kid. Lemme see that head..."

Tatsuki pawed Yemon's head a few times, and he didn't complain at all. Between the drunkness and the hit on the head, Yemon seemed completely out of it. After fumbling like that for a few minutes, the lights of the room came to life and Nanao entered the room.

The Lieutenant was carrying a tray with a ceramic bottle, some glasses, and a cloth bag. She put the tray on the room's desk and approached Tatsuki.

"Let me do that," she said, kneeling by Yemon's bed. "The head you say?"

"Uh, yeah."

Nanao reached out with both hands, took a deep breath, and concentrated. A light blue light came to life around her hands, very faint and flickering in and out. After about a minute, the light died out completely and Nanao let out a tired sigh.

"He's okay. I can't find any internal damage."

"That'sh... great. Shooo, you can fix 'im?"

Nanao smiled. "I'm sorry. I'm too spent to heal anyone. Yachiru took all out of me."

"Oh, I shee... Howsh she?"

"She'll be fine, just needs some rest." Nanao stood up, and offered Tatsuki a hand. "I am sorry about my previous outburst."

"Ah, sh'kay," Tatsuki replied, taking the offered hand and standing up.

"Want to have that drink then?" Nanao offered, gesturing towards the desk. She walked ahead of Tatsuki, took the wet cloth bag, and went back to Yemon. She put the bag on Yemon's head, and helped up put his hand up to hold it. "Just some ice, it'll help."

Yemon muttered something that could have passed for a thank you, but nothing else. Nanao sat down by the desk, and Tatsuki did so at the end of her bed. The Shinigami filled two of the small glasses, and passed one to Tatsuki.

"Thanksh," Tatsuki said with a grin.

"You're welcome," Nanao said, and raised her glass to look at the contents. "I'm afraid it's not sake, but it's all we have."

"Sake?" Tatsuki said, sniffing the amber liquid. It smelled like strong bourbon, heads and shoulders above the horrific stuff they served at the Falcon.

"Yes. That's what the Captain used to drink." She smiled sadly, and looked at Tatsuki. "He was always goofing around, you'd have gotten along with him quite well. But he was... He was..." Nanao didn't finish the phrase.

Without missing a beat, Tatsuki raised her glass. "To our friendsh that are gone." She grinned. "Sho we'll not forget 'em. That'sh what we'sh been drinkin' today to."

Nanao looked at Tatsuki for a moment, somewhat surprised, but then smiled and raised her own glass. "To our good friends. To Captain Kyōraku."

"And to Orihime, and Ichigo, and everyone else."

Tatsuki drank quickly, and couldn't hold back a happy humming noise at the excellence of the liquor. Nanao did so quietly, and refilled the glasses without a word.

"Thanksh," Tatsuki said.

"No, thank you. Both of you," Nanao replied.

"Huh?"

Nanao emptied her glass and took a moment before answering. She pointed at Yemon. "I got lectured by that kid and I didn't even realize until you two left. I was trying to carry the whole vault on my back instead of trusting others. I was isolating myself, and did not even notice."

Tatsuki had emptied her glass while Nanao talked, and offered it at her prompt for a refill. "And me?"

"You?" Nanao filled her glass and raised it. "For being you." They both drank, and Nanao changed topic as soon as they finished. "I'm surprised you decided to come into the vault again."

"Sheesh, don't remind me. I hadsh to get 'im down 'ere," Tatsuki said, pointing at Yemon with her thumb. "I hate bein' under like thish."

Tatsuki sighed and fell back on the bed with her eyes closed.

"Well, it's just the top level, don't worry. I'll leave the door open," Nanao said, standing up and picking up the glasses. She took the tray and made for the door. "Good night, Arisawa-san."

"G'night."

Tatsuki listened to Nanao's steps grow fainter, and before falling asleep, she pushed herself up to her feet and stumbled to Yemon's bed. She took the bag of ice, felt under it for bumps on Yemon's head, and then replaced it.

"Shorry about that," Tatsuki said, but Yemon was completely out and didn't reply. She smiled and stroked her hairclips. "What a shame, huh? He'sh gonna haf a big bump tomorrow."

She turned to go to her bed, but lost her footing and fell on her butt, with her back towards Yemon's bed and her legs towards her own. She tried to stand up again, but quickly gave up. Too much effort, and it was pretty comfy on the ground like that. She laid back to find support for her head on Yemon's bed, and fell asleep in seconds.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>A bit of downtime to recover after the craziness of the Café - and to get Tatsuki and Yemon drunk! I'm having way too much fun with these two.

Blackout1170: If I ship them, I'll get eaten by rabid poodles, sent by the Orihime/Tatsuki shippers! :D


	25. Family Matters

No, you can't always get what you want

But if you try sometime, you just might find

You get what you need"

- **The Rolling Stones,**_You Can't Always Get What You Want._

* * *

><p>Yemon woke up in a haze, unsure at first of where he was. The ceiling was unfamiliar, and there was an empty bed on the opposite side of his. On the small table between the two beds there were two tall glasses of water, and next to each a spoon loaded with some white powder. There seemed to be a piece of paper under them.<p>

"Ugh, where am I sleeping?" he muttered. "I better get up or Maya wi-"

He started to move as he spoke, and realized he was pinned under some weight on his chest. He saw a mat of black hair with two hairpins that he didn't recognize at first, until his brain finally kicked into gear.

_Right. Of course it's not my vault._

With great care, he extricated himself from under Tatsuki to get out of bed, but his manoeuvres ended up waking her companion up.

"Uh... Ye... mon?" she muttered, opening her eyes only the barest of minimum.

Yemon thought she looked very tired, even worse than just having woken up.

"Good morning," he said. He realized that he had no idea what time it was, but a quick look at the Pip-boy let him confirm it was indeed morning, albeit late. "You look tired."

Tatsuki mumbled something unintelligible in response and dropped back on the bed. Yemon smiled benevolently, and decided to let her be for the time being. He took one of the glasses, and saw that the paper on the table was in fact a note.

_This should help with the hangover. Let it dissolve and drink it slowly._

"Hangover?" he said out loud. "Oh, that's right, yesterday."

He didn't recognize the handwriting, but thought it was a very nice gesture. He took one of the spoons, dropped the powder into the glass, and stirred it in as it bubbled and fizzled.

"… you... feelin'...?" Tatsuki said, talking without raising her head or even opening her eyes.

"I'm feeling fine, you look tired though."

"… lil' bit."

"Come on, this should help."

Yemon helped Tatsuki sit up on the bed, and fed her small sips of the fizzy drink until she had finished the entire glass. It took a while, and for a couple of moments Tatsuki fell asleep in his arms as she was. When he was done, he put her back in bed and tucked her in.

"Well, just rest then, there's no hurry."

"… 'kay."

He took the chance to have a shower, which felt absolutely heavenly after all the time in the wasteland. Last time he had shed two tones off his skin in dirt and grime, and while this time it wasn't that bad, it was still fairly noticeable. It was still a very short shower, water management habits from his old vault hadn't changed one bit.

Clean and refreshed, he left for the infirmary, hoping to find Nanao and Yachiru there. He walked instead to an empty room, but for a female Shinigami who was cleaning the place.

"What is it?" the woman said.

"Oh! Um, sorry, I thought Ise-san would be here. What happened to Yachiru?"

"If you mean the pink-haired girl, she's down with the Lieutenant in her office."

"Ah..." Yemon hesitated, but the woman just resumed her duties. "I see, thanks!"

He made his way to the bottom live-in level of the vault, and stopped in front of the Overseer's door. He wasn't sure whether he wanted to knock, or just wait until Nanao was done with whatever it was she was doing.

After a few seconds of indecision, Nanao's voice called from inside the office. "Come in, Kurosaki-san."

"Uh..." he hesitated for a moment in surprise, but then pressed the release controls of the door. Nanao was sitting on the back of the room, next to the spectacled woman with the pink kimono he had seen the last time he was there. He didn't see-

"Kurochi!"

The attack was as sudden as it was unexpected, and a moment later Yemon found himself on the ground face first, with Yachiru perched on his back.

"Owwww!" he complained, struggling to sit up thanks to the added weight. "Yachiru!"

"Heheheeeee, good morning!"

"Jeez, good morning," Yemon replied, rubbing his forehead. "You seem to be full of energy."

"Yes! Let's go out and play!"

"Yachiru," Nanao interrupted. "I told you to take it easy for a few days, didn't I?"

"Bu-uuuut," Yachiru said, complaining with an overdone fake pout on her lips.

Nanao smiled and turned her attention to Yemon. "Kurosaki-san, this is Yadōmaru Lisa."

"Ah, it's a pleasure ma'am," Yemon replied.

Lisa didn't move a muscle or say a word, just like he had expected. From that angle he could see that her sideways hairdo was concealing a rather considerable scar that went up over her skull.

"Lisa was my predecessor as Lieutenant of the 8th Division," Nanao clarified, getting Yemon's attention again. "How are you feeling? You seem better than I expected."

"Ah, I'm fine, I guess I didn't drink as much last night as I thought."

"Really? Hows the head?"

Yemon felt a chill up his spine when Nanao asked that question in such an easygoing way, and his brain started to pick up every scrap of information in an effort to mollify the Shinigami. "Ah! Well, you see... After all that happened Tatsuki was feeling kinda down, and the fight with that arrancar she saw her friend and she couldn't save her, so I thought to cheer her up and before I knew it we-"

"It's fine," Nanao interrupted, much to Yemon's surprise. "Sometimes... I guess sometimes it's not so bad to have a few drinks with friends."

"Y-Yes, I think so. She's still in bed though, I think she has a bit more of a hangover than I do."

"That may have been my fault," Nanao said, and smirked.

There was a short pause, and Yemon took the chance to change topics and get back to what he had come for in the first place.

"Anyway, just came by to check how Yachiru was doing." He looked at his shoulder, where Yachiru was resting her chin with a smile on her face. "I'm amazed, Ise-san. Thank you."

"There is no need to thank me for healing Yachiru," she replied.

Yachiru giggled, but didn't say anything.

"So, we're kinda leaving tomorrow. Guard duty on the caravan to the Brotherhood"

"Guard duty?" Nanao said, somewhat surprised.

"Yeah, it's a long story. But it'll let me kill two birds with one stone. So," he looked over his shoulder at Yachiru again, "you can stay here."

"Whaaaa? I'm coming too! Sounds fun!"

"But... Don't you prefer to stay with Ise-san?"

Yemon shuddered when Yachiru tightened her embrace over his shoulders. That girl could probably snap him in half if she wanted to.

"I wanna go with Kurochi and Blueberry and Dogmeat."

"I- Wait, you haven't given Dogmeat a nickname yet?"

The change of track was so unexpected that Yachiru started to giggle and relaxed her grip, much to Yemon's relief. He looked at Nanao, who smiled at him and shrugged.

Yemon sighed, and smiled too. "Okay then, but we have to leave tomorrow. Is that okay with you, doctor?"

"Just don't let her go too wild," Nanao said.

"And how can I stop that?" Yemon replied.

"Yahoo! We're gonna go on a trip!" Yachiru shouted, finishing all chances of having a normal conversation.

Yemon left the office soon after that, with the excuse that he wanted to prepare for the trip. In truth, the problem was that he was broke and the food supplies he had brought with him out of the Vault were about to run out.

_I wonder if I can get a quick job somewhere._

With a final stop to check on the still sleeping Tatsuki, he left the Vault. The glare of the sun was still uncomfortable, but he managed well enough even without his polarized goggles.

_At this rate I'll get used to the Wasteland by the time I have to go back to the Vault._

He paused for a moment to recap what he had just thought. He was definitely looking forward to going back home, but for some reason he had thought about _having to go back_.

_I guess I'll miss them. Maybe Tatsuki would want to come as well. Or am I being selfish?_

He spent some time wandering around town, asking around if anyone had some odd job he could do for quick cash, but without much luck. It did give him time to think about his strange situation, which he had grown accustomed to. He really hadn't expected that.

His thoughts took him wandering around town until he came upon a discussion between a Shinigami and an older looking fellow. The Shinigami was one of the guards he had met when he arrived bringing Yachiru, but he didn't recognize the other was mostly bald with some white hair on the temples and the back of his head, worn-out looking, wearing brahmin-skin overalls and a pair of decrepit leather boots.

"I'm telling, it's my farm!" the old man was saying.

"And as I've told you, we can't help you! We've got enough trouble keeping order in here. If you want to be under our protection, you have to be within the limits of the Hub!"

"You... You just let them take all my life's work? Not enough, is that it? Too bleedin' poor to-"

"For crying out loud, just hire some mercenaries if you want to! It's nothing to do with that!"

"B-"

"What seems to be the problem?" Yemon said, interrupting the conversation.

"My farm's taken by raiders!" the old man said, turning to Yemon in exasperation. "That's the problem! And none of you Shinigami-"

"He's not one of us," the guard said.

"What?"

Yemon took a moment to realize he was wearing a regular Shihakushō, and not his Vault-marked one. "No, I'm not from this Vault. Not to make too fine a point, but maybe I can help if you're paying..."

"Hmph," the guard huffed.

"Look, I have to eat too, you know," Yemon replied.

"So you're a mercenary," the old man said, eyeing Yemon up and down. "Don't seem like much. Got a weapon?"

"Well yes, I do."

The Shinigami guard shook his head and left them to their discussion, neither of them noticing his departure.

"I can give you this," the old man said, pulling a 10mm automatic pistol out. "It's clean and well taken care of. Got some ammo too."

"Won't you need that for yourself?"

"Pft, fat lot o' good it's done me!" the man retorted. "Can't give anything else."

Yemon took a moment to think. "You said you have a farm. You got spare food? Because that's what I really need at the moment. That, or caps."

"If them raiders haven't eaten it, it's there. Dried meat, and corn, and all sorts."

"How many raiders?" Yemon said, realizing he had not asked the most important question.

"Well, 'bout four of them. Give or take."

"Give or take?"

The man furrowed his brow. "Look, had to run away, 'kay? Not got time to count 'em."

"Okay, okay, fine. Are they Shinigami or just-"

"Just folks with guns. That bad enough for you?"

Yemon raised his hands in a mollifying gesture. "Fine, fine. I'll see what I can do."

He got the directions to the farm, and left first to the Vault to grab his knife. It was only then that it struck him how he had just taken a mercenary job so naturally. It was different from the time he had rescued Tandi, back then he had been caught in a chain of events trying to save Tatsuki's life. This was just some random occurrence in the middle of the wasteland.

It also occurred to him that he was taking a lot of unnecessary risks, had been doing so since the day he set foot outside.

All this thoughts were in his head when he stepped into the Vault.

_Maybe I can talk it over with Tatsuki..._

He was surprised when he entered their room, and found that Tatsuki was still in bed. He sat at the edge of the mattress, and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Tatsuki? It's well past noon."

"Hrm..." she mumbled. She tried to open her eyes to look at Yemon, but gave up and closed them again, dropping her head back on the pillow with a thin hiss that didn't even qualify as a mumble.

"Are you okay? What's wrong?"

Another non-mumble as a response. Worried, Yemon took off to find Nanao, and came back with the Lieutenant just a few minutes later.

"There's something wrong with her, I-"

"Yes, you already said that," Nanao interrupted as they walked in. She sat kneeling down by the bed, and put her left hand on Tatsuki's head. "Arisawa-san?"

"Hrm... -me 'lone..." Tatsuki replied, not opening her eyes or moving.

Nanao furrowed her brow and let go of her. She extended both her arms, hands open with palms facing down, and concentrated. Her hands started glowing a soft blue, and Yemon felt an increase of reiatsu from them. After a few seconds, the glow disappeared.

"What exactly did you do yesterday?" Nanao said, turning to Yemon.

"Huh? What's wrong?"

"Her reiatsu, it's totally drained. What did you do?"

"I... Reiatsu?" Yemon said, clearly confused. "We didn't... I didn't think Tatsuki had anything that used reiatsu... I don't know. Nothing, just had a few drinks, and came back."

"Uh-huh," Nanao said in a flat tone. She took the blanket on the other bed, folded it, and put it on the floor as a cushion for her knees. "You don't remember."

"Well... I don't think we did anything really."

"No, one does not get this depleted by doing nothing," Nanao retorted, and then sighed. "I can help her a bit, but I'm quite tired myself."

Yemon was now kneeling next to Nanao, looking at Tatsuki.

"Is she going to be okay?"

"It's fine," Nanao said, smiling reassuringly. She extended her right hand, palm facing forward, and gripped her right wrist with her left hand. A small glowing ball of reiatsu appeared in front of her palm. "Rest and food are usually enough to recover one's reiatsu. I'll just try to get her on her feet for your trip tomorrow."

"I see." He looked at Tatsuki, wondering about what it was she had done, but couldn't come up with anything. He finally shook his head and stood up. _I have a job to do. _"Thank you, Ise-san. Again, heh. We're really imposing on you."

"It's not a problem." He looked sideways at Yemon, who was taking his knife. "Are you going somewhere in particular?"

"Raider problem. Don't worry, it's not in the city limits."

"Do be careful," Nanao replied.

The caravan was possibly the largest one Yemon had seen in his travels so far. The brahmin were loaded to capacity everywhere, and many of them were pulling carts made of salvaged halves of cars. Most of the cargo consisted of salvaged technology, large parts of electronics and similar junk.

Going by what Yemon had heard, the Brotherhood paid good coin for salvaged technology. There was also a rumour that they could be quite aggressively persuasive when it came to recovering potentially dangerous tech.

He looked back at his party. Tatsuki was barely on her feet, still looking tired but nonetheless awake enough. Yachiru was lively, but he had seen her the day before going from hyper to fast asleep in the blink of an eye. And then there was Dogmeat.

"Well there you are, I was starting to worry!" Yemon said as the dog ran towards them. "I've been searching for you all morning, didn't you hear me calling? I told Ise-san to keep an eye for you while we were gone!"

Dogmeat barked repeatedly and waged his tail while Yemon spoke, until Tatsuki stopped the rather one-sided non-conversation.

"Keep it down please," she said, putting one hand on her forehead and closing her eyes.

The dog whined, and approached the young woman with lowered ears. He sniffed her hand and licked it once. Tatsuki responded by scratching his muzzle.

"It's fine you silly mutt. I'm just having a bad day."

Yemon looked at Tatsuki and Dogmeat, and smiled.

Everyone's attention was taken when the head of the caravan called to order.

"Okay, everyone ready, we are leaving!" he shouted. Short and to the point, it would have been useless to do any speeches, as the noise of the caravan moving out quickly drowned everything in a chorus of brahmin moos, creakings from all the loads, and the cacophony of cries from all the caravan drivers getting the whole menagerie going.

Yemon adjusted his pack to be on his chest, grateful for the extra weight of his newly acquired rations, and started the mental countdown from ten. He didn't even reach five before Yachiru had jumped on his back, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and her legs around his waist.

"Let's go!" she called.

"Yachiru," Yemon said, smiling and shaking his head. She had his knife on her back; since she was going to be on his back, she may as well carry the knife. "You're going to have to get off when Tatsuki gets too tired, okay?"

"No way!"

"Yachiruuuuuuu, I'm serious."

"This is my spot!" she complained, giggling.

"Yemon," Tatsuki said. "It's fine. Let's go."

Tatsuki, too, adjusted her luggage over her shoulders. The bag of ammo was the heaviest item, but the plasma rifle wasn't too light either. Yemon looked at the heavily laden bag and made an annoyed face.

"Tatsuki, you still have all the railway spikes in there, don't you?"

"Of course I do."

"Why didn't you throw them away? We don't have the railway rifle anymore."

"Because," she replied with a sigh. "I have this freaking almighty nuclear... _thing_." She pointed at the plasma rifle. "And I have the peashooter." She pointed at the 10mm handgun. "And _nothing_ in between. You've got to make me another one."

"Why don't we just get a real gun instead?"

"With what money?"

Yemon opened his mouth to reply, but closed it without saying a word. She was right. "Okay, okay, if we can find the parts I'll make you another one. Come on, we don't want to fall behind."

The first day of travel was rather uneventful, something Yemon was quite grateful for, given the state of his travel companions. While giving all the outwards appearance of being recovered, Yachiru took to taking naps whenever fancy struck her without as much as a warning, and Tatsuki was still dog-tired despite Nanao's efforts the day before.

She had failed to give an explanation for her reiatsu depletion, something that had Yemon worried. The fight at the Café of Broken Dreams had taken its toll on her, so her theory was that it was the fight that was responsible for her tiredness, and it had simply caught up with her during the night.

It still didn't convince Yemon, but he knew better than to argue with her. She was grumpy enough with her sleepiness and her wounded shoulder.

The second day was a different story.

"Hollow!" a voice called from the front of the caravan.

It was the middle of the day, and Yemon was carrying Tatsuki at the time, much to the territorial Yachiru's annoyance. That same annoyance disappeared from the pink-haired Shinigami's face as soon as she heard the words, as she squealed with childish glee at the prospect.

"Dibs!" she called, dropping Tatsuki's gear and taking off in a blur of shunpo. And in doing so, taking Yemon's knife with her.

"Yachiru, wait!" Yemon shouted, but his words had no effect. "Really now, this girl's impossible sometimes. We should-"

The sudden appearance of a hollow reiatsu behind them interrupted Yemon's plans. A flying hollow was diving towards the caravan, and straight towards the rear, where Yemon, Tatsuki, and Dogmeat were.

"Dogmeat! Watch out!" Yemon called, turning to face the Hollow. It seemed to have chosen him as the target, probably hoping for a two-for-one deal, and was diving down at incredible speed. Yemon waited until the last second, and dodged away with Hyrenkyaku.

He raised his left arm as he moved, and under the croaking of the Pip-boy, called his small quincy bow, shooting several rounds with a single hand while holding onto Tatsuki with the other. The Hollow moved too fast for him to get any clear hits, and swooped up into the air away and out of range. After just a few shots, Yemon was forced to dismiss the bow, and it disappeared with an audible bang.

As soon as he landed, Tatsuki jumped off his back.

"Are you ready?" Yemon said.

"No, the plasma rifle."

Yemon followed Tatsuki's gaze, and saw it was laying on the ground where Yachiru had dropped it, together with the ammo bag. It was quite a distance away and in the midst of the pandemonium that was the caravan. The appearance of the flying hollow had caused a stir, but they were starting to organize themselves into a defensive formation.

"Go for it, I'll cover you."

A new reiatsu appeared not far from where they were, as another hollow made their way to the caravan. Yemon took a moment to search, and felt several other hollows coming at them.

"We're going to have more company!" he called, yelling at the running Tatsuki.

"Just get the flying one!" she replied.

Yemon called his regular Quincy bow and loaded an arrow. The flying hollow was much too fast for him to just shoot willy nilly, so he concentrated on taking him by surprise with that one arrow. He had never tried it on combat before, but he knew all about the theory on it.

The hollow was definitely fixed on him, so he didn't have to make any effort to draw its attention. He aimed the arrow, waited until the hollow was close, and let go of it. As he expected, the hollow dodged it easily, and continued its attack.

With a hand gesture from Yemon, the arrow changed path mid-air and turned towards the hollow, coming at it from the back. It never saw it coming.

Yemon had been standing stationary on the same spot playing chicken with the hollow, giving his arrow a clear path of attack, and was forced to dodge with Hyrenkyaku to avoid the crash landing of the wounded hollow. He called his bow and aimed as soon as he landed, but he didn't have to fire a single arrow.

Like it happened when fighting at the Café of Broken Dreams, the mysterious figure clad in a longcoat and a fedora appeared out of nowhere, killed the hollow with a single, well-placed kick to its face, and disappeared in the blink of an eye before he could even say _what the buggery bollocks was that_.

"What the hell is-"

"Yemon!"

Tatsuki's voice calling his name brought him out of his reverie. Before he could react, though, a large hand grabbed him where he stood, easily immobilizing him. A moment later the hollow had also a very angry Dogmeat dangling from its arm, biting furiously and trying to chew its way through the soft flesh. A shot of plasma passed dangerously close to his face, missing the hollow completely.

There wasn't a second shot. Yemon struggled in vain to free himself in what appeared to be slow motion. When he wasn't successful, and seeing as the mouth of the hollow was now uncomfortably close to him – rather, he was uncomfortably close to the mouth, but who's counting? – he concentrated on bringing his Quincy bow out.

The struggle ended abruptly when a heavy reiatsu landed on the battlefield, crushingly immobilizing friend and foe alike. One of the weaker hollows started to disintegrate into spirit particles even without anyone touching it, and the rest soon joined its fate, turning into red and white mince jelly at disturbingly high speed.

Only Yemon and Tatsuki recognized the reiatsu.

"Yachiru!" Yemon called, freeing himself from the now severed hand with great relief.

"Can't talk now, busy playing!" Yachiru replied. She disappeared in a blur, but it wasn't long before she appeared again. Her reiatsu had not completely materialized above her as it usually did, but there were solid flashes of pink appearing and disappearing above her. "I can't find any more," she said, pouting.

"I think there aren't any more left," Yemon told the pink-haired Tasman devil. "Can you... Stop that?"

"What?"

Yemon didn't answer, he merely pointed at the caravan, and how uncomfortably everyone was being crushed by the reiatsu. Yachiru mouthed a wordless '_oh_', and a moment later the pressure was lifted, much to everyone's relief. There was a lot of hubhub trying to calm down the brahmin, as they understandably looked like they wanted nothing to do with that place, but the confusion was mixed with a general sense of relief at the outcome of battle. Parties were organized to help the wounded and to help the caravan get back on the road.

"Great job Yachiru, I was in quite a pickle there!" Yemon said, mussing the young woman's pink hair. When she didn't answer, Yemon continued talking. "What's wrong?"

"It's no fun," Yachiru said, speaking in a bummed voice. "Without Ken-chan's patch they don't last long enough..."

"Oh. Well, you never know, we may run into something stronger. And didn't Ise-san tell you to take it easy for a few days?"

"It's okay," she replied, disappearing from view and appearing almost immediately perched on Yemon's back. Try as he may, she could never get used to that, and almost crashed on his face again. "I'm gonna take a nap now, 'kay?"

"Yachiru, wait! We... Ah, what the hell, sweet dreams," he said, laughing softly to himself.

He gestured with his head at Dogmeat for him to follow, and went to join Tatsuki, who was fussing with her plasma rifle while wearing a very displeased expression on her face.

"Tatsuki, what's up?"

"You have to be more careful, what were you thinking?" she replied, not looking up.

Yemon had to stop for a moment to think about what she meant. "Oh. That. Yeah, I got distracted, did you see that guy with the coat and the fedora?"

"Which one?" Tatsuki replied, still not looking up.

"The one that killed one of those arrancar at the Café the other day. He showed up again."

Tatsuki stopped fussing with the rifle and looked at Yemon, eyes opened wide. "Seriously?"

"Yeah, you didn't see him?"

"No, where?"

"He killed the flying hollow. I had hit it with an arrow, but still."

Tatsuki looked at Yemon for a couple of seconds with the same surprised expression. "That's a bit creepy. Who is that guy?"

"Beats me," Yemon said, shrugging. "What are you doing with the rifle?"

"This stupid thing takes forever to reload," she complained. "I can't see any way to make it faster."

"Really? That's odd, it doesn't use bullets or anything, right?"

"I know! Can you take a look?" Tatsuki offered the rifle to Yemon, but had to take it back when she realized he had his hands full just keeping Yachiru on his back. "Well damn, that's my spot," she said with a smirk.

"Well geez, should I get you a saddle to make it more comfy?"

"I'll survive," she said, still smirking. "Let's go."

The rest of the trip was rather uneventful. The caravan was much too large for the typical raider party in the wasteland, and after the first encounter hollows seemed to keep their distance, much to Yachiru's annoyance. After the second day's incidents, Yemon and company found themselves being given plenty of space by the rest of the caravan. Not that they weren't happy about how quickly the incident had been resolved, but they looked even more scared of Yachiru than they were of the hollows.

Not that Yemon could blame them.

The Brotherhood base came into view from quite a distance, although Yemon didn't know what it was until they were a lot closer. It looked rather unimpressive from the outside, there were a few guards milling about and a tiny construction surrounded by a barbed wire fence, and all around the base the remains of what must had been a city or some other settlement.

It wasn't until he saw them up close that Yemon realized what the guards were, because they were clad in heavy metallic armor that seemed to be self powered or something, and they looked huge. The armors themselves appeared to be made of very solid metallic plates, almost medieval looking but with a modern forging style, grey in colour and all appeared rather worn out. What was most striking was the helmet, which was also a very solid piece, with a narrow visor and a mouthpiece with two tubes coming out of it that looked almost like a breather. The tubes connected to a pair of canisters on the back of the armor, and under the canisters was something that Yemon recognized as a power pack.

"Bloody hell," Yemon muttered as one of them passed by, reviewing the contents of the caravan. The armor whizzed and whirred, with a slightly rusty note in the background. "What are they wearing?"

"That's power armor," Tatsuki replied.

"Power armor?"

"One of Kurotsuchi's inventions. Supposedly they were to power humans to be able to fight hollows." Tatsuki's expression darkened as she spoke.

"Supposedly?"

"Well, what it meant was better ways to kill people, not hollows," she eyed the passing guard suspiciously. "There were always people in those things in all the safe cities I went to, never did shit to help us."

Yemon furrowed his brow and looked at a second guard walking down the caravan. Also clad in power armor, he was carrying a very sizeable minigun, and the way he handled it made it look like it was light as a feather.

"They don't look particularly friendly," Yemon said.

"I wouldn't trust them."

"Well, let's hope we can call in a favour and find out if they've got the part I need."

The caravan took a long while to settle down, nobody seemed to be in a hurry. Unlike regular caravans, this one appeared to be aimed exclusively at selling scavenged junk to the Brotherhood, and not doing regular trading as they moved.

Yemon decided that they didn't have to waste any time with the caravan, and made to the door to the fenced-in compound instead. They were halted by the guards standing in front of the small construction, which Yemon deduced had to be a simple entrance to the underground Vault.

One of the guards halted them before they got too close. "Where are you going wastelanders?" he said. The voice came through the breather with a metallic note to it. "Caravan's supposed to camp outside the _clearly marked_ area."

"We're looking for Rush, did he make it back from the Hub?" Yemon said.

"Rush?"

"Yeah! You know, bald, silly moustache, thick eyebrows..."

The other guard sniggered audibly.

"Yeah, yeah, don't let him catch you saying that about his moustache," the guard said.

"Heh, right."

"Still, no one is allowed in. I'll let him know you're here, but that's all."

"Jeez, tough crowd," Yemon replied, shaking his head.

"Told ya," Tatsuki said.

Yemon turned to look at her, and to his surprise Yachiru was nowhere to be found. For some reason, he felt a chill running up his spine.

His fears were confirmed when the door behind the guards opened, revealing that it was the entrance to a cargo lift, and standing in it was Yachiru.

"Kurochi! Blueberry! What are you waiting for? Let's go!"

_Shhhhhhhhhhhhit!_

"Yachiru, what-" Yemon said, before being interrupted by the guards.

"You, what are you doing? How did you get in there?" the guard Yemon had been talking to said.

The other didn't say anything, but raised his minigun towards the pink-haired girl. Yemon's thoughts continued their stream of profanity while he tried to put a word in to ask for everyone to calm down, but it was too late.

The two guards were sent flying by Yachiru in the blink of an eye, and in another she had dragged Yemon and Tatsuki into the lift.

"Yachiru, stop!" Yemon demanded, fruitlessly. "We can't cause a stir here! Are you nuts?"

"It's okay!" Yachiru said. The door of the lift closed behind them right after Dogmeat had jumped in, and they started their slow descent towards the bowels of the Vault. Yemon reached for the controls, but Yachiru swatted his hand.

"Stop that Kurochi!"

"But-"

A loud alarm broke through the air, they couldn't tell where it was coming from.

"Shit!" Yemon shouted over the ringing.

"Dammit!" Tatsuki echoed. "Yachiru, why the hell did you do this? We're not looking for trouble!"

"There's no trouble!" Yachiru said with a big smile. It wasn't long before the lift landed and the doors opened, and the three of them found themselves at the business end of several high-caliber guns. There were at least half a dozen armored men pointing their guns at them, and another half a dozen Shinigami clad in regular Shihakushō. They were all standing in the opposite end of what appeared to be a pretty standard underground Vault corridor, with the huge Vault door open behind them.

"Stop where you are!" one of the Shinigami shouted. She was about a head shorter than anyone else, less than an inch above five feet, if that; with short, dark blonde hair, grey eyes, and an oval-shaped face. She was clad in a regular Shihakushō with the collar of a white shirt protruding over the uniform, white gloves, and a wooden badge tied around her left arm.

"Kiyonin!" Yachiru shouted, waving.

Several heads turned towards the short woman, but none of the guns stopped pointing at them.

"Again," Yemon muttered, looking at Tatsuki.

"Seems so," Tatsuki muttered back. "I wish she didn't fight her way into places like this every time though."

Nobody said a word, while the alarm continued ringing loudly. Finally, the woman pointed at Yachiru with a huge expression of surprise on her face, mouth wide open and eyes bulging. "Whaaaaaaaaaaa, YACHIRU?" she shouted over the alarms.

Both women ran towards each other and collided into an embrace right in the middle of the near-battlefield, much to the surprise of the Vault inhabitants, and less to the surprise of Yemon and Tatsuki.

On that end of the room, relief was the most noticeable feeling.

The two young women jumped out of their embrace, and it was the shorter one who spoke first. "Goodness, but you've grown tall! You're taller than sis! What a surprise, where did you come from? Why- Hold on." She turned to the other Shinigami, and her demeanour changed immediately. "SOMEONE TURN THAT BLOODY ALARM OFF!"

Yemon and Tatsuki took an instinctive step back, hairs standing on end. No matter how much he looked at her, Yemon couldn't figure out how such a loud voice could have come off such a tiny person.

The order was followed, and soon the atmosphere had relaxed visibly. While the two women continued their talk, Yemon and Tatsuki ventured a few steps inside and away from the lift.

"These are your friends?"

"Yeah! That's Kurochi, and this is Blueberry!"

"I'm Kotetsu Kiyone," she said, smiling. "Lieutenant of the 13th Division and First Paladin of the Brotherhood. It's a pleasure!"

"Ah, hello. Arisawa Tatsuki, and this is Kurosaki Yemon." A moment after she finished, there was a bark coming from behind. "Ah, and the mutt's Dogmeat."

"Kuro-..." Kiyone didn't finish the phrase, and turned to Yachiru. "Kurosaki? That Kurosaki?"

"Yeah! He's just like Icchi!" Yachiru replied.

"How-"

"Make way!" a voice interrupted, together with the sound of numerous approaching footsteps. They all turned towards the incoming commotion.

Several Shinigami led the way, while behind them was one that really stood out. The mat of white hair stood in stark contrast with the black uniforms of the Shinigami, and so did the white haori. The haori had the same 十三 drawn on the back that Kiyone had on her badge, but from where they were standing, Yemon couldn't see it.

"Captain!" Kiyone called.

The ranks opened up as they marched, and finally the leading party broke apart to let the Captain through. She was looking just as surprised as Kiyone had been, though less expressively than the more impulsive Lieutenant.

"Yachiru!" the captain shouted.

"Rukia!" Yachiru replied.

The scene repeated, with Yachiru and Rukia rushing to each other and getting into a warm embrace. Kiyone looked at the scene with a huge smile on her face, while Yemon looked on with just a slight, amused smile. He looked at Tatsuki, and he realized she was looking at the white-haired Shinigami with great intensity.

"It really is you!" Rukia said, pulling Yachiru back and looking up and down at her. "I can't believe it! Where have you been? How are you?"

"Captain," one of the Shinigami that had come with her said, taking her attention for a split second.

"Oh right!" She firmed her demeanour, but couldn't manage to wipe the smile out of her face. "Did you attack the guards up at the door?"

"Yup!" Yachiru replied, all smiles and sparkles.

"And nobody was really surprised," Yemon muttered, smiling.

The muttering took Rukia's attention, who leaned sideways to look at them.

"Captain," Kiyone said. "This is K-"

"Arisawa-san?" Rukia said, interrupting Kiyone and with an even bigger surprise on her face than she had had when greeting Yachiru.

"Hello Kuchiki-san," Tatsuki said, waving weakly.

Rukia rushed to her side, grabbing Tatsuki's arms and smiling widely. "Oh my, Tatsuki! I can't believe it! How..." Her voice trailed off when her eyes landed on the hairpins on Tatsuki's head. A long and deep silence followed, and then Rukia and Tatsuki exchanged a look, still not saying a word.

Yemon looked at the exchange very uncomfortably, not saying a word and trying not to even make a noise. When Rukia finally embraced Tatsuki, both their expressions were quite different, and he was sure he was missing something important between those two.

_I'm not even going to ask._

"Well," Rukia said, pulling back and smiling at Tatsuki. "It's great to see you Tatsuki." She turned to Yemon, and the intense look she gave him sent a chill up his spine. "And you!"

"Y-Yes ma'am!"

"This is Yemon," Tatsuki said. "_Kurosaki_ Yemon."

Rukia looked back at Tatsuki over her shoulder, but didn't say anything.

"Karin's great-grandson," Tatsuki finished, grinning.

"Oh," Rukia said, and looked at Yemon again. The expression of disappointment in her face was so clear that even Yemon could tell what she was thinking.

"Jeez, again. I'm deeply sorry I'm just me and not my great-granduncle."

"But his reiatsu..." Rukia muttered.

"I know," Tatsuki replied. "I made the same mistake when I pulled him out of the river."

"Pulled him?"

"Oh yes, he almost drowned in there."

Yemon looked at the exchange with some discomfort. There was some sort of in-joke passing between the two women, but he couldn't tell what it was.

"So," Tatsuki said, looking at Yemon and pointing at Rukia with her thumb. "You really have no idea who this is."

"Uh... No?"

"Kuchiki Rukia. It doesn't ring any bells?"

Yemon examined Rukia more closely. She was even shorter than Kiyone, a few inches short of five feet. White hair cropped into a bob hanging about her face, with a loose bang hanging between her eyes. The eyes were violet colored and slightly downcast, she had a rounded face, and was wearing a mischievous grin too. Her forearms were covered with a pair of long, fingerless white tekkou. She had her arms crossed, and for her attitude it was clear she was expecting something from Yemon.

"I'm... I'm sorry, I don't think it does. But it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Aw, I'm so sad now," Rukia said.

"I'm sorry, I just..."

"Yemon," Tatsuki said, putting one hand on Rukia's shoulder. "Rukia's the one who gave your uncle his Shinigami powers the first time."

"And the third time," Rukia added.

"You..." Yemon's gaze became unfocused as his brain churned, and with a suddenness that only lacked a bell ring at the end, he opened his eyes wide and looked at Rukia again. "You... You're _that_ Shinigami? Seriously?"

"It's good to be remembered," Rukia said.

"I bet it is, he had no idea who I was," Tatsuki replied.

"Oh Yemon, how _could _you?"

"I-I-I'm sorry, I just heard this from Gran-gran, it's... I'm sorry.." Yemon said, getting visibly flustered.

"Aw, this is too easy," Rukia complained, looking at Tatsuki who just shrugged back with a smile.

Without missing a beat, Rukia turned to the pack of Shinigami, who were looking at the scene with visible confusion, and waved them off. "Okay everyone, show's over, back to your duties. And Akio?"

"Ma'am?" one of the armored Shinigami replied.

Rukia pointed upwards with a finger. "Tell them that's what happens when they underestimate their opponents."

"Yes ma'am."

"Okay then," Rukia said, sweeping her gaze over the newcomers. "What brings you to our base?"

"It's a long story..." Tatsuki said.

"Great, let's hear it. But first!"

Everyone stopped in their tracks, looking at the small Captain. She had paused dramatically, and didn't look like she was going to continue.

"First?" Tatsuki prompted.

"First... You're all taking a bath, because you stink of brahmin!"

Rukia laughed at the surprise in their faces, and Kiyone imitated her captain by pinching her nose and making a face at the smell.

"Come on, this way," Rukia said, leading the female party.

She stepped in and flicked the lights on, and was followed by Yachiru, Tatsuki, and Kiyone closing the party. The room looked more like a workshop, with a couple of large stainless steel benches on the back wall, several pieces of power armor laying here and there. In the center of the room was a pit that looked like it could have been a pool, and there were showers lined on the wall to the left. Rukia turned a dial, hit a switch, and the pool started filling with water.

"This is actually a workshop to clean salvage, but when we're not using it it doubles as a bath." She looked at the others with a smile. Yachiru was looking at the pool filling with a huge smile on her face, but Tatsuki was standing uneasy, looking side to side and sweating. "Tatsuki? What's wrong?"

"I... kinda don't like being underground," she muttered. "Can we do this outside?"

"Really? Well, that's not a problem," Rukia replied. She hit another switch, and a low beeping noise started to fill the room. After a short pause, the ground started shaking under their feet, and with a grinding noise, the ceiling started to part in the middle. Tatsuki looked up, and saw that there was a tall shaft above their heads, and at the end she could clearly see open sky.

"See? No problem. That's how we get large things into the Vault."

"Ah, that's much better."

A head poked in at the end of the shaft, and a voice called from the distance. "Oooooiiii, is everything okay down there?"

"Just fine!" Rukia shouted. "Noone peeks down here, you hear?"

"Yes ma'am!" the answer came.

Kiyone and Yachiru had already taken their clothes off, and were very noisily washing under the showers, with many a squeal and a giggle. Rukia started taking her clothes off too.

"Come on, we'll get your clothes cleaned too," she said.

"Okay, okay."

Rukia's smiling face changed to surprise when Tatsuki took her own clothes off, revealing her bare skin. She had a huge ugly scar across half her back, still pink as if it wasn't too old, and a much fresher wound on her shoulder. There weren't the only scars she had, but they were very striking.

When Tatsuki sat down on a stool to soap herself, Rukia came from behind and put her hands on her back.

"Oh, thanks," Tatsuki said, mistaking her intention and offering her the bar of soap over her shoulder. When Rukia didn't take it, she looked back over her shoulder. "What is... Oh, that."

Rukia's hands started to glow in a soft blue light, but Tatsuki interrupted her. "Don't worry, it's fine. The shoulder's bothering me a bit, but should be okay in a few more days."

The glow disappeared.

"What happened?"

"It's a long story," Tatsuki said, sighing.

"Everything's a long story with you!" Rukia said, laughing and taking the bar of soap.

A few minutes later all four were inside the central pool. Kiyone and Yachiru continued their playing, while getting gently scolded every so often when they got too boisterous.

"Man, this is great," Tatsuki said. She dived in all the way up to her nose and let out small bubbles of air.

"It sure is. We usually just use the showers, but it is nice to indulge now and then."

Tatsuki pulled up and sat with her back to the side of the pool. She put a small towel into the water, wrung it, and put it on her head. Her eyes fell on the pieces of power armor piled on one side.

"Rukia."

"Hm?"

"What's with the power armor?" Tatsuki said, pointing at the parts.

"It's one of the things we do," Rukia said, following Tatsuki's eyes. "We collect dangerous technology, mostly made by Kurotsuchi. Much of it is too dangerous to just let anyone use it." Rukia looked at Tatsuki, and saw that she had her brow furrowed. "What's wrong?"

"Kurotsuchi. Do you even know half the stuff he's been up to?"

"You... No, let me guess. It's a long story."

"Ise-san has all the information we've recovered, but-"

They were interrupted by an extremely vigorous series of knocks on the door. "Captain! Captain!"

Rukia rolled her eyes and called out loud. "What is it? Are we under attack?"

"W-What? No, we-"

"Then it can wait."

There was a pause. "Captain, the Lieutenant and you will want to hear this."

"Huh?" Rukia looked at Kiyone, who was splashing all over the place as Yachiru was trying to tickle her to death, and turned to the door. "What's going on?"

"It's... Captain, it's too long to explain like this. We'll be at the library when you're done."

Rukia tried to go back to the bath, but she quickly gave up in restlessness. "That ruined the mood."

"It sure did," Tatsuki said.

"You can stay here if you want, I'll go check it."

"It's fine." Tatsuki raised her hands out of the water and showed them to Rukia. "I'm going all wrinkly already."

A few minutes later they were all gathered around one of the tables in the library, a level below the entrance. The only thing in the middle of the table was a small metallic item, a circular metallic badge shaped like a radiation warning symbol.

"Where did you get it?" Rukia said.

"Yachiru... _Found_ it in the pocket of a guard at the Boneyard," Yemon said.

"Are you sure they were working for Kurotsuchi?"

"Given what we found in the town..." Yemon replied. Rukia looked up at him, and he nodded. "Without a doubt. They basically had the town hostage, and were there to feed the deathclaws."

"I see. It's a shame you didn't bring the disks you found there. Maybe we should pay Ise-san a visit and find out what-"

"Captain!" Kiyone interrupted. "We don't have time for that!"

"Calm down," Rukia said.

Yemon looked at Kiyone. "Are you sure about-"

"I am! How couldn't I? That's one of the keys they use at the Cathedral! That's sis' Vault!"

"I'm just saying..." Yemon tried to mollify her.

"Captain, permission to travel to the Cathedral. I have to make sure sis' okay."

"Kiyone..."

"Please!"

Rukia sighed. "Okay, fine. I'm going too."

A chorus of voices raised in unison as a response. "What?"

"Seems like we have been careless. Tatsuki, you said Kurotsuchi has been making trouble."

"Yeah."

"I think we should come out of the shell and see what's happening."

"Okay then, let's go," Tatsuki said, much to everyone's surprise. Again. "What, are you kidding? I'm not letting Rukia get in trouble alone."

"Um.. Okay? When are we leaving?" Yemon said.

"Right now!" Kiyone retorted.

"Kiyone," Rukia chided her. "We'll be ready by morning."

"Why don't you stay Yemon?" Tatsuki said. "You've got to find that chip of yours."

"I've got that," one of the Shinigami said. He was sitting on a wheelchair, had dark hair made in a tall hairdo, with a narrow face, a goatee, a white headband, and white straps around his uniform's shoulders. "I can't recall if we have any information on spirit particle filtering, but I'll check the records."

"Third seat Kotsubaki," Rukia muttered.

"Don't worry Captain. Just make sure this hotheaded crazy doesn't get in trouble."

"WHO'S HOTHEADED?" Kiyone shouted.

"YOU ARE YOU DUMBASS!"

"SHOW SOME RESPECT, I'M YOUR SUPERIOR OFFICER!"

"YOU ARE JUST HIGHER RANKED THAN ME!"

While the two of them continued the rather silly shouting match, Rukia turned to Yemon and Tatsuki. "It may prove to be nothing, there's really no need to trouble you."

"Don't be silly Rukia," Tatsuki retorted. "What are friends for?"

"Yeah," Rukia replied, with a smile on her face.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>Welcome to my New and Improved™ fanfics! Now with an i7 3770 processor and 16 Gb of memory!

What? You can't tell the difference?

Well, bugger...

More to the point, after not getting anything written in November, as it was NaNoWriMo (I didn't even _open_ Ffnet during NaNo), I was looking forward to getting some writing done here, but my computer had other plans for me. A blow power supply later I was out of computer, and replacing parts to get things back up and running was a massive pain in the netherparts.

But yes, I finally got to introduce the Brotherhood of Steel! And yes, that was foreshadowed since the day Yachiru pickpocketed the guard at the Boneyard. If you had already put the pieces together, pat yourself on the back!

Blackout1170: Yes she does, and absolutely, you should! Someone has to poke some fun at Rukia too :D


	26. Pride and Fall

"Our most basic instinct is not for survival but for family. Most of us would give our own life for the survival of a family member, yet we lead our daily life too often as if we take our family for granted"

- **Paul Pearshall.  
><strong>

* * *

><p>Tatsuki would have liked to have had a chance to catch up with Rukia, but the white-haired shinigami excused herself and disappeared mere minutes after deciding they were leaving for the 4th's headquarters. Vault 13 had stirred up like a hornet's nest at the business end of a rock thrown by a naughty kid. Only the wasps had kidō, swords, power armor, and really, really big guns.<p>

_I guess the boss leaving is a big deal. The boss _and _the second in command. It's a bit odd, come to think about it._

Yemon was not much use either; he had holed up in the library and was going through records, looking for information on spirit particle filtering. With Dogmeat laying at his feet with all the aplomb in the world, and Yachiru having disappeared from sight, she was on her own.

Wandering around trying to get out of the way, and more importantly, looking for a way out of the underground compound, Tatsuki ended up in a large room where several Shinigami were gathered around a tatami. An older fellow was giving a lecture, and Tatsuki found herself edging closer to hear what he had to say. He was not particularly tall, and looked rather wiry. He had white thinned-down hair almost shoulder length, and sunken cheeks and eyes on a narrow face.

"You understand now? Don't overreach, if you overreach, you ruin your balance."

"But sensei," a young shinigami interrupted. "If we see a chance, shouldn't we take it?"

The instructor took a long look at the young man, and spoke in a somewhat derisive voice. "That'll have to be one hell of a chance to risk your life like that."

The room fell silent, to Tatsuki's surprise, as her amused chuckle came through much louder than she would have preferred. Way too many eyes turned her way, and the old fellow gave her the stink eye before a pulse of reiatsu came her way from him.

_Jeez, touchy fellow._

After giving her that same look for a few moments, he turned to the rest of the students. "Very well, that is enough for today."

Tatsuki made a mental shrug and turned to leave the room, but before she could take three steps she found herself in the middle of a half-dozen shinigami circle. While they all wore rather long faces, the one that stood directly in front of the path she was following looked like the worst of the lot.

Her quick glance was enough to make a mental plan to follow in case she needed it. The one on her right looked to be the youngest of the lot, and she had a good angle there to make it past the door threshold and onto the corridor. A good choke point to take them on.

"So," the shinigami in front of her said, speaking in a deceptively terse tone. He had long, thin and flat hair held in a ponytail, was well built, with an oval face, upcast dark eyes, and sharp features. In other circumstances she may have thought him attractive. "Be so kind as to explain what you found so amusing about our training."

"I was actually amused at your master's quip, about how good a chance would have to be to risk one's life," she replied, somewhat stiffly. She didn't expect Rukia's people to be so ridiculously stuck-up.

"I see. You find him amusing."

_Not what I said,_ Tatsuki thought. However, she failed to find a reason to be conciliatory at all. She had never liked stuck-ups, so, instead, she drew a smirk. "Yeah."

She felt hostility growing around her, but the man stopped the others with simple hand gesture. "Perhaps I could impress on you the importance of the lesson you failed to grasp."

He pointed at the tatami, and like a wave the body of students pressing around her opened up a path to it. Tatsuki looked back at it, then at her opponent and, still smirking, made a small gracious bow. "Please teach me well, _sensei_."

She emphasized the last word before turning, and made for the tatami without a glance around. She took her shoes off and undid her pistol holster before stepping on it, then started stretching like a cat while the shinigami took position opposite of her.

The man had a bokken in his hands, but Tatsuki didn't even care. She caressed the hairpins in her hair, and the gesture brought a great sense of relief. She never liked fighting alone; she didn't feel alone at all anymore.

She smirked again, a very different kind of smirk this time, and raised her guard. With her feet close together at half step, she raised her right arm to point at her opponent with the palm facing up, and the left hand resting on the right wrist.

"Arisawa Tatsuki," she said.

"Fujiwara Torao," the shinigami replied. "You use no weapon?"

"No need. It's only friendly sparring, isn't it?"

Tatsuki's smirk morphed into the kind of gesture one could expect from a cat in front of a mouse. Fujiwara didn't hide his irritation at that, while the students that had placed themselves at the edge of the tatami again called for him to teach her a lesson. Fujiwara raised his bokken and nodded, getting a nod back from Tatsuki.

Out of habit, Tatsuki had been assessing the rest of the room as well – always checking for more potential enemies. She caught a glimpse of the sour-faced teacher discreetly standing at the back end of the room.

_Oh this is going to be fun._

The first move was made by Fujiwara. He charged ahead with what looked like reckless abandon, but Tatsuki knew better than trusting appearances. His stance came together again as soon as he made his last step at striking distance, and he made a downwards swipe with the bokken. Tatsuki was ready, and she closed the distance between them, crossing her arms to block her opponent's and, thus, the attack. The man reacted almost instantly, taking a step forward to push Tatsuki back with his much larger bulk, and making a new attack. Tatsuki barely dodged by bending backwards as she regained her footing, letting it pass just inches over her face.

Fujiwara continued pressing undeterred. He made a thrust, which again was barely dodged by the flat-footed Tatsuki, who again barely dodged a third attack while trying to get some space. He made a sweep with his leg, almost throwing Tatsuki off-balance when he hit her ankle and swept her own leg, but she had just shifted weight and managed to dodge the subsequent attack.

The hubhub of the onlookers rose, excited at seeing their comrade getting the upper hand. After just a few more attacks, during which Tatsuki looked increasingly at a disadvantage, she made a false step backwards and had to lose her stance completely to prolong the step and not fall down. Seeing his opportunity, Fujiwara took a determined step forward and made a strong thrust with his bokken.

To his limitless surprise, he found himself pulled forward and out of balance, with Tatsuki right under him. He didn't even see how it had happened, and the next thing he knew the girl had thrown him with a full spin of her body, making him crash on his back. She landed several punches on him, and finished with her fist on his throat, stopping short of actually doing damage.

"It's my win," Tatsuki said, smirking and slowly forcing her breathing under control.

Fujiwara was looking at her like she had grown a second head.

"How in the name of-"

"You fool!" the voice of the master interrupted his question, immediately commanding everyone's attention.

Tatsuki stood and looked at the old man with an amused smirk. It was likely he was the only one in that lot that had realized what was happening. She bent down and tapped Fujiwara's chest. "Come on, stand up."

She stepped aside, and he jumped to his feet while trying to ignore his back. Despite the tatami, it had been a hard landing.

"I-I'm sorry sensei. I don't... I have no excuse!"

The old man made her way through the pass of students, who were quickly stepping out of his way. He stepped onto the tatami, and stared his student down. "You overreached!" he snapped. When he got no response, he continued. "You don't even realize what happened, do you?"

He turned to Tatsuki, who merely shrugged and, in turn, looked at Fujiwara.

"I drew you in. Making it look like I was barely managing was just a trick, I kept increasing the distance between us until you had to overreach to attack me." She smirked at the face Fujiwara made after the revelation. "Don't feel bad. The point is that it's hard to notice when done properly."

The teacher stared at his student until he looked down. He then took the bokken from the man's hands, and without warning made a swipe at the back of his legs. He fell to his knees with a grunt, and grunted again when the teacher cracked the bokken against his back.

Tatsuki's mouth opened in surprise, and it was worse when she realized the young man had been expecting it. Despite Fujiwara being such a stuck-up, she didn't like that spectacle one bit. A quick glance around showed her that the rest of the students didn't like it much either, but noone raised any objections.

She stroked her hairclips and looked at the old man. He was raising his bokken a third time. And she couldn't hold back any longer.

"That's enough!" she shouted.

There was a general hush, as if the entire room suddenly inhaled and held its breath. Ignoring her, the old man finished punishing his student. It was only after that he turned to look at Tatsuki.

There was no room for doubting his intentions. Tatsuki took a step back, not because she was intimidated, but to make sure her stance was ready.

"Get out of the tatami," the old man said, making Fujiwara pick himself up and scurry away.

Tatsuki took another two steps back and adopted a ready stance, although she didn't raise her arms. The old man walked several steps around her, until he finally found his position.

"You better not think you can defeat me without a weapon," he said, and pointed at one of the students with his bokken.

He stood up to make for the weapon rack, but Tatsuki stopped him. "I'm not that good with those. But if you insist..." She reached back into her pocket, and pulled her pair of brass knuckles, showing them. "I can use these."

"Fine!" he retorted, shaking the bokken and raising it with both hands.

She put her knuckles on, flexing her fingers and pressing until they fell into place perfectly in her fists, and assumed her boxing ready stance. "Thanks. Name's Arisawa Tatsuki, by the way."

"Takage," the old man replied dryly.

Unlike his hot headed disciple, Takage didn't immediately charge, or move from the spot. They both stood at the ready, looking at each other's every change, shifting almost imperceptibly in response to each other's most minute movements. They stuck in place like that for several minutes, both completely oblivious to the rising tension.

_Well, I'm bored now_, Tatsuki thought.

She flashed a smirk at Takage, only for a split second, and then widened her foot stance slightly. Her eyes appeared unfocused, and from that point on she didn't respond to any of the twitches and feints the old man tried. She looked like a statue, but to the trained eye of the more experienced fighters, she had the air of a coiled spring, ready to jump. She wasn't as much inviting her opponent to make the first move as simply forcing him to do so. In the given situation, she was the one who could wait forever.

When he finally made his move, three things became immediately clear to Tatsuki, all coming together into a single flashing thought. One, he had a fantastic compact stance that left no openings. Two, he was a lot faster than her last opponent.

He made a thrusting attack as he charged, and right before Tatsuki dodged, he disappeared in a blur. The next moments happened so fast that most of the students missed it. Takage appeared right behind Tatsuki, already making a second attack, but found his thrusting arms wrapped under Tatsuki's leg. The much lighter girl used this as a pivot, and with the impulse cracked a punch right on Takage's jaw.

Which led to thought number three, the one she was repeating in her head while looking at her opponent fall.

_You're fucking slow compared to Yachiru._

A dry hush preceded the sudden silence that gripped the room. Takage was down cold, with Tatsuki on top of him and still holding his arms wrapped under her left leg. The odd angle that the man's lower jaw made betrayed a rather nasty fracture.

"Something you should know," Tatsuki said, talking to the unconscious man. "I may not like stuck-up people, but I fucking hate bullies."

She disentangled herself from the man and stood up, looking at the dumbstruck faces of the students around the tatami.

The group broke up when someone at the back yelled "captain!", and they formed ranks to welcome Rukia as she walked into the room. She looked at Tatsuki, looked at the unconscious man, then back at the girl.

"I was wondering what was happening up here," she said. "Did you just break my instructor?"

"A little bit," Tatsuki said with a smirk. Her expression changed to one of annoyance. "I didn't know you kept bullies around."

"Bullies?" Rukia said, surprised. Tatsuki gestured with her head at Fujiwara, who flinched away from Rukia's gaze.

"What's going on?" she said, walking to intercept his possible escape. Despite being so much shorter than anyone else, Rukia's presence was overwhelming when compared to the other shinigami in the room.

"Captain, it's nothing! We were just sparring, and-"

Rukia jumped behind him with shunpo, and gave him a strong slap on the back. He was caught so much by surprise, that he couldn't stop the yelp of pain. Rukia gave him a clinical eye, and then looked at the fallen instructor.

"How long has this been going on?"

"Captain," Fujiwara protested, "it's not-"

She caught a glimpse of Tatsuki as she was leaving the room, and raised a hand to silence the shinigami. "We will discuss it later." She pointed over her shoulder with her thumb. "Take him down to the infirmary."

"Yes Captain," Fujiwara said in a dejected tone.

Rukia left the room after Tatsuki, and caught up with her in no time. "That was unsightly. Sorry about that."

"Ah, it's fine," Tatsuki replied. She clenched her fist and raised it to take a look at it. "It was fun to stretch a bit."

"More than a bit."

"Ah well, I've had practice."

They stopped at the entrance to the Vault, and Tatsuki pointed back with her thumb. "I'm going topside, I don't like it down here."

"Really? You seemed fine a minute ago. Better than when you came down."

"Sheesh, don't remind me. I fucking hate it down here. Will you make it up? I'd like to catch up with you."

"I have too much to do," Rukia replied, shaking her head. "We'll have time during the trip."

* * *

><p>Rukia was as good as her word, and they were off early in the morning the next day. Despite considerable protests from the rest of her squad, she only allowed her lieutenant to accompany her, as well as the newcomers. Having the top command away was all she'd allow at the same time. She had left a long list of assignments for the rest of his troops, some of which were only to keep them occupied.<p>

"Are we ready?" she said, looking back at the group. For an answer, Kiyone took off at a good pace, and Yachiru did the same, going after her. If there was something the pink-haired shinigami couldn't stand was seeing someone sulking.

Yemon was grateful for being relieved from the Yachiru-carrying job.

"I'll take that as a yes," Rukia said, and started her walk too, adjusting her small pack.

Yemon gave Rukia and Tatsuki some distance during the trip. The two women were lively chatting from the very moment they left the Brotherhood base, and barely slowed down during the day. He saw them laugh loudly, giggle discreetly, turn serious, and look like they were talking about things nobody else had any business hearing. He barely said a word during the day, but he didn't mind one bit.

_It's nice to see her talking to someone like that._

They set camp after having walked a considerable distance in the first day. Yemon was exhausted, and gave only grunts and single words as replies to all the questions Rukia was asking him. He even fell asleep in the middle of a sentence.

"He seems like a bit of a lightweight," Rukia commented as Tatsuki tucked him in by the fire.

"He's getting better. You should have seen him the first days out of the vault," Tatsuki said, looking down at Yemon and smiling. "He used to fall asleep in the middle of the day because it was too hot."

When they themselves were seated down by the fire, Rukia looked at him and commented idly. "I had heard that there was a vault only for humans. I wasn't sure if it was true."

"Really? He said that the shinigami knew about it. Some guy he met shortly after he got out told him. A shinigami."

"Odd, did he say who he was?"

"Uh..." Tatsuki took a moment to think. "Can't remember the name, someone from Vault 9 I think?"

"Ah, that would explain it. The 9th Division was the security force of Seireitei. They probably knew more about the vaults than we did."

"I see..."

Tatsuki quieted down but kept her eyes fixed on Rukia. After a while, the white-haired Captain looked back at her. "What is it?"

"Just... What happened? I haven't asked you, but... You know. Back then."

Tatsuki looked away and fixed her eyes on the fire as she spoke. Rukia wasn't sure if she was asking because she was genuinely curious, or because she wanted to talk about it herself. Nonetheless, she sighed once, laid back down comfortably, and started talking.

"I was in Hueco Mundo at the time. That fool Ichigo went on his own to rescue Orihime instead of waiting for us, so we had to catch up with him."

"Yeah, I know." Tatsuki, too, fell back and laid next to Rukia. The sky was clear, and the moon wasn't out yet. There were a myriad of starts across the firmament. "He did the same to us. Even when I told him I knew Orihime was gone. Even..." Tatsuki's voice thinned out, and she put a hand on her mouth, trying to hold back. She mumbled in a low voice behind the hand. "The last thing we said to each other. I was so angry I punched him. I was so angry... and he told me to stay away. He told all of us."

Tatsuki had to stop at that point, so Rukia reached out and grabbed her shoulder. "It's fine. Renji and I clobbered that fool when we caught him in Hueco Mundo."

Tatsuki nodded in response, but didn't say anything.

"But really, things wouldn't have gone too well for us. Then reinforcements came from Soul Society. Nii-sama, Kenpachi, Captain Unohana and Lieutenant Kotetsu. Hanatarō too."

"And Kurotsuchi," Tatsuki added, getting her voice under control.

Rukia took a moment to reply. "Yes, him too. Aizen trapped us there before attacking Karakura town, but we had our hands full with the Espada anyway."

"What about Ichigo?"

"Well... He made it back to Karakura."

Tatsuki waited, but Rukia didn't add anything. "And?"

"And I don't know. I was trapped on the other side." She waited for Tatsuki to say anything, but as she didn't, she continued talking. "When everything started to fall apart, Nii-sama had us return to Soul Society, put everyone in the Vaults." Again, Rukia paused and fruitlessly waited for Tatsuki. "I was hoping you'd tell me about Ichigo."

The conversation didn't turn any less awkward, or halting, as Tatsuki took her time responding to that. When she finally made up her mind, she turned to Rukia and shook her head. "I don't know. Yemon told me Karin saw him die. I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"No. I... I was... dead."

Rukia opened her eyes wide in surprise, and Tatsuki immediately looked away. It took some doing, but by the by Rukia managed to tease most of the story out of her. Aizen's arrival, what he did to her. Orihime. The destruction of Karakura town. And her lonely life in the wasteland after an eternity underground to avoid the bombs.

Tatsuki didn't mention the years of drug abuse. She didn't go into much detail about anything. She flipped between relief at talking about it with Rukia, and wanting never to say anything again.

After getting to the point when she met Yemon, Tatsuki stopped giving any more details. They had talked about her recent travels during the day, in between reminiscing about the old times before the war, and that was plenty. Rukia still had a seemingly endless supply of questions about the time when her own Vault was closed to the outside world, the best part of the last 100 years while Hueco Mundo, the World of the Living, and Soul Society merged. But nothing was as important as Tatsuki at that point. One hundred years on her own letting those thoughts chew inside her were not something the Shinigami could even understand. She had had her share of year-long issues, but she had always had support.

"When was the last time you told this to anyone?" Rukia asked. "Someone who was a friend."

"Never," Tatsuki whispered. "Until I met Yemon. Never told... Most of the time I never had anyone to tell anything to." She suddenly started laughing. A much too loud laughter, the sound of which worried Rukia somehow. "You know, when I made it out of Akiyoshido, it took months before I met another soul. I came across an old man, wandering with a young boy and a little girl, and I couldn't understand anything they were saying. They couldn't understand me either. I had been alone so long I couldn't process the sound of voices."

Rukia reached out again, and grabbed Tatsuki's shoulder. "You're not alone anymore, are you?"

"No," Tatsuki shook her head. "Yemon will go back to his vault, and that'll be it."

"What? What am I, a baked potato?"

"What? No! Of course not!" Tatsuki retorted. She took a moment to consider her answer. "I just don't like Vaults very much."

"You don't have to live in one. You can just come visit whenever you want. We can have tea parties!"

Tatsuki looked at Rukia in surprise, looked at her grin, and had to put both hands on her mouth when she started laughing uncontrollably.

On the other side of the fire, Yemon took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He was tired as all hell, but he was glad they had woken him up with their chatting.

_Good for you Tatsuki..._

* * *

><p>It wasn't his Vault, but Yemon found the underground layout strangely familiar. There were dead bodies everywhere, snihigami bodies covered in blood, some stabbed, some severed into pieces. He ran around like a headless chicken, completely lost. All he found were bodies. On the lower level he walked into a room he did recognize. Several computer terminals were placed along the room. A dead shinigami lay on a pool of blood, next to an empty wheelchair. And standing next to him was a figure clad in white, neck-long white hair and extremely pale skin. The figure turned around and looked at him, and Yemon had the feeling that he was almost looking into a mirror.<p>

The figure started laughing.

A moment later, Yemon woke up in a cold sweat. He was breathing heavily, and it took him several seconds to get his bearings back. The campfire had died, but there were enough embers that it was still warm when laying close to it. His companions were sleeping around the fire, all of them laying down close to the warmth except for the white-haired shinigami Captain, who was sleeping in a sitting position with her back to a large rock and her Zanpakutō laying on her lap.

_Shit. What a crappy dream._

He took a few more moments to calm his breathing down, and stood up carefully. Tatsuki was sleeping next to Dogmeat, who was laying down with his head next to the young woman's feet. The lieutenant of the 13th – _Kotetsu-san_, Yemon remembered – was sleeping with careless abandon sprawled on the ground, and Yachiru was laying with her head on the short girl's stomach.

After calming down, he stole away and tiptoed a few steps until he was far enough for any noise he made not to be heard by the rest. The waning crescent of the moon was up, and provided just about enough light for him to make his way through.

He found a small boulder and seated himself on it, looking at the sky. It was as spectacular as ever, just enough of the moon to see where he was going, but not so much that it drowned the light of the rest of the stairs.

A cough caught his attention, coming from a distance behind him. He turned to see the white-haired Captain standing a few steps away.

"Can't sleep?"

"Captain," Yemon said, speaking in a soft voice. "I'm sorry, I didn't want to wake anyone."

"Don't be so formal. Just call me Rukia."

She made her way to the rock, and sat by the young man. Neither of them said a word, both were enjoying the stillness of the night. It was Rukia who broke the silence, once she had judged she had waited enough for the awkwardness to disappear.

"You have been very quiet today," she said.

"Yeah."

Rukia looked at him and smiled. "Any particular reason?"

"Oh, it's not a big deal," Yemon replied with a shrug. "It seemed like Tatsuki and you had a lot to catch up with. A hundred years worth."

"A hundred years," Rukia said, still smiling. "It will take us a while."

"I can imagine. Still, it's good she has someone to talk to."

"She already does," she said, giving him a significant look.

"Heh, not really. I'm just..." He paused for a second, trying to find a way to express what he was thinking. "I'm just like... a replacement for my great granduncle. She needed a real friend out here."

"What? Don't be ridiculous!"

"It's true. It's the same with Yachiru. Well... I think. It's hard to make what that girl's thinking."

"Why would you say that?"

Yemon kept his eyes fixed on the slender crescent of the moon and shook his head. "I'm really just a visitor out here. Eventually I'll have to go back into my Vault."

"You'll have to... Do you _want_ to?"

He looked at Rukia shrugged. "It's my place. And they're counting on me to find that chip." His gaze wandered back to the sky. "I've caused enough trouble up here already."

"What kind of trouble?" Rukia inquired. Her tone would have sent alarm bells going inside Ichigo's head, but his great-grandnephew didn't have a clue.

"I've nearly gotten Tatsuki killed... Heck, I don't even know how many times. And Yachiru. Nevermind Kenpachi..." He shook his head. "At this rate I-"

***THUNK***

His explanation was interrupted by Rukia giving him a rather vigorous knock on the head.

"Ow! Ow ow ow!" Yemon complained grabbing his head with both hands and turning to Rukia.

"You idiot! Just who do you think you are?" she said, a little too loud for the late time of the night.

"Bloody hell... Owwww, dammit! What the hell was that?"

Rukia placed herself in front of him with her arms crossed and a deep frown on her face. "You little punk, don't think so highly of yourself. How is what other people do your fault?"

"How isn't it?" he argued, still rubbing his head in pain. "If I hadn't gotten in their way-"

"You're doing whatever you have to do, and so are they! Seriously, Ichigo would never do something like-"

"I'm not Ichigo!"

Yemon's hotheaded response was cut short when he saw a completely unexpected smile appear on Rukia's face. When he didn't speak, it was Rukia who did so, putting her hands to her hips.

"That wasn't so hard, was it?"

"W-What?"

"Of course you aren't Ichigo, you think they can't tell you knuckle head? How can you think that of your friends? That you're just a substitute, don't make me laugh!" She looked at Yemon with a deep frown as she talked, and the latter didn't find a word to speak back. She crossed her arms and shook her head. "Seriously."

Yemon looked down and stopped rubbing his head. "It's not... Eh, I guess it is. I'm sorry."

"You're not supposed to apologize you moron."

"I guess..."

Rukia waited for a while, but as Yemon didn't say anything, she ended up just patting his back and going back to camp. But before she could take three steps, Yemon stopped her.

"I'm not sure," he said.

"Eh?"

"The Vault," Yemon clarified, not looking back at her. "I'm not sure if I want to go back. Back inside I mean. I lived there all my life, but... I don't know, these few weeks outside have changed my life." He chuckled out loud. "Jeez, that sounded corny."

"Don't be silly," Rukia replied, smiling and thinking of how Ichigo had once said the same about her.

"What I really need," Yemon continued, now turning back to look at Rukia, "is to find that chip. And I'm running out of time."

"We'll help you. We really will," she replied, smiling, and turned to walk away. "G'night!"

* * *

><p>The trip to the Cathedral, as the 4th's headquarters was called in the Wasteland, was much shorter than Yemon had anticipated. Kiyone had pushed them almost like a slave driver, and Yemon had been the one to suffer the most. Barely any pauses, no matter how hot the days got, and no help for him either. The best he got from the short Lieutenant were virtual whiplashes of reiatsu. She could really put the fear of god in him.<p>

They came into view of the building early in the morning of the eighth day. Kiyone was the first one to see it, and she made sure the rest of them knew it.

"Ru-Captain!" she shouted, waving from the front of the party. "We're here! Come on!"

She was about to take off running, but Rukia appeared by surprise next to her in a blur of shunpo, stopping her hotheaded subordinate in her tracks.

"Slow down, we have to figure out if there's something wrong first."

"But-"

"Calm down," she insisted, and waited for the rest to join them. As soon as Yachiru was in range, Rukia reached out and grabbed her by the ear. "No disappearing. We're doing this by the book."

"Awwuuuu!" Yachiru protested.

"We're here?" Yemon said, with a bit too much gratefulness in his voice. He adjusted his oversized knife on his back, and the strap of his travelling pack. Thanks to Kiyone, Yachiru had not been jumping on his back too frequently.

"Almost," Rukia replied, pointing at the building ahead. "About an hour to get there."

"Oh."

"But if there's someone we should worry about, they'll probably feel us coming."

"Should we rush them then?" Yemon said.

"Yes!" Kiyone replied approvingly. "Let's-"

"Stop!" Rukia interrupted. She looked around at the members of the team. "We may be able to get there really fast and catch someone by surprise, but if we don't know what's in there it'll be useless! The best thing to do is to approach calmly and don't raise any alarm bells. _Once_ we get the lay of the land, we'll see. It may be nothing."

She pointedly looked at Kiyone as she said the last phrase, and got a reluctant nod from her Lieutenant. With the plan made, they resumed their march, and driven by Kiyone, they reached their destination in only half an hour.

The enormous building looked like an old fashioned cathedral from the pre-war days. Yemon wasn't much up to speed with classic architecture, not enough to recognize a real Gothic construction. The large buttresses on the outside of the building caught his eye. They were stunning, specially as they looked like they were being held up as if by magic. Pure stone constructions with arches diving into the side of the main building, some of them looking worse for wear but all of them holding up magnificently.

"I can't believe a building like this survived... Well, _everything_," Yemon said.

He looked down from the building, and noticed he had been left behind. Kiyone and Rukia were talking with the locals that were milling about, Tatsuki was standing at a distance and looking around as if she distrusted her own shadow, and Yachiru and Dogmeat were playing a squealing and barking game of tag with some kids.

_Jeez, isn't that nice._

His examination continued as he walked, looking at the wastelanders. There wasn't a single shinigami in sight, until he realized the shinigami of that particular vault weren't wearing the standard uniforms. A purple robe over black shihakushō was what they wore, and his memory had to reach far to remember Tatsuki pointing out the man that had saved his life after the fight in Junktown.

"Right, that makes sen- Woah!"

In his distracted walk, he bumped into someone, and reacted just in time to grab the young girl he nearly knocked down, grabbing her before she hurt herself. He quickly went down to one knee besides her.

"I'm so sorry, did I hurt you?"

The girl turned her dirty face up to Yemon, and broke out a front-teeth-missing smile. Without saying a word, she reached into the small basked she was carrying, and pulled out a somewhat wilted flower, offering it to him.

"For me?" Yemon said, surprised.

The girl nodded, and laughed happily when Yemon grabbed it and pinned it on the knot holding his Vault 14 shihakushō.

"Thank you very much," he said with a smile.

The girl waved at him as he walked away, and soon he had caught up with Tatsuki.

"Anything?" Yemon said.

"Not sure..." she replied, looking at the wilted flower and smiling. She then pointed at Rukia. "She's been quizzing everyone around I think. She said it was unusual to have so many wastelanders hanging out here."

They soon were joined by Rukia, who approached wearing a relaxed, smiling face. Yemon thought it meant everything was fine, but Tatsuki picked something completely different out. She made a point to avoid looking at Rukia, and kept her gaze fixed on the wastelanders.

"What's wrong?" Tatsuki said when Rukia reached them.

"Something's off here. I can't find any of the seated officers, and... I don't know, the shinigami here are acting very strange. Fake friendly. They're hiding something."

She made a discrete gesture, and Kiyone soon joined them. Unlike Rukia, she wasn't hiding her annoyance, or her anxiety.

"Captain..."

"I know." She looked at Tatsuki and Yemon, and then at Yachiru, who seemed to be having a grand old time n the distance. She was carrying a young girl on her shoulders, and they were charging at the other kids under a chorus of high-pitched squeals.

"What's the plan?" Yemon inquired.

"I went in to check real quick," Rukia said, surprising everyone around her. "The back's closed, which is unusual. But we have a key." She reached into the sleeve of her shihakushō, and produced the round metallic key Yachiru had stolen for them.

"Uh-huh."

She gave her companions one last look. "Yemon and I are going in."

"Captain!" Kiyone protested.

"You're too excited. I'll unlock the door, Yemon and I go in with shunpo. Kiyone, Tatsuki, distract the people inside to let us make our move. Any questions?"

"Just one thing," Yemon said. "It's not shunpo, it's hyrenkyaku."

The three women turned to look at him with varying degrees of surprise and _what the hell_-ness on their faces.

"Well, everyone keeps getting it wrong!"

Rukia shook her head. "Fine. Anyway, we two can get in like that. Kiyone, most people here know you, so see if you can get them to talk to you and let us go."

"You bet, Captain!"

"Great. Let's move."

Kiyone and Tatsuki walked in first, while Rukia and Yemon waited discreetly by the door. Yemon found the view of the inside of the building absolutely fascinating. It was the tallest room he had seen since the bottom of Vault 12 and the hollow cages in it, the walls had numerous windows of stained glass representing what appeared to be a shinigami Captain, with the numeral 四 figuring prominently in several places. There were countless rows of benches inside, and the space was mostly empty but for a few shinigami here and there.

Kiyone put a good show of being happy to see everyone inside, quickly capturing their attention. It was a bit too loud for such a distinguished building, or so Yemon thought, but the shinigami appeared pleased to see Kiyone. At least outwardly.

It wasn't hard to hear what was being said, thanks to the echoing acoustics of the cathedral. After just a few minutes Yemon understood what Rukia had meant.

"She's the sister of the Overseer here, right?" he said.

"Yeah," Rukia replied.

"They don't sound so happy to see her."

Rukia nodded, but didn't say a word. Before Yemon could add anything, she raised a hand to stop him and get his attention.

Wordlessly, she disappeared in a blur of shunpo, and the back door on the right side of the cathedral opened as if by magic. Rukia had passed by and unlocked it, not stopping and landing a few meters away behind a column. She gestured to Yemon to follow.

_Here we go..._

He took a final look at the room, saw that everyone was distracted by Tatsuki and Kiyone, and took a deep breath. He aimed for a two-step move, stopping behind one of the columns and, holding his breath, he went for it.

It was not something he was used to, having to jump with so much pressure, so although he made the first jump perfectly, he nearly lost his balance when he landed past the door on the second jump. He was steadied by Rukia grabbing him by the obi, as she slid the door closed with barely a whisper of a noise.

"Careful," she said in a low voice.

"Sorry, not so good at hyrenkyaku."

"Really?" Rukia said with a smirk.

"Well, at least when being this sneaky." Yemon took a look around, and found they were in a narrow corridor. The corridor opened up to a room, with a staircase going up to the right, and a wall to the left.

"Wait, what?" Rukia said, stopping Yemon.

"What is it?"

Rukia walked up to the wall, and examined it minutely. "This is new. There wasn't a wall here before."

"Really?"

Yemon walked in while Rukia examined it, and gave the layer of bricks a tap. There was a hollow echo back.

"Stop that!" Rukia said in a much-too-loud whisper. "I could have done that myself!"

"Sorry," Yemon said, scratching his head sheepishly. His eyes fell on a carved hole at the bottom of the wall. "Wait, what's that?"

Rukia followed the direction he was pointing, and saw the hole. She sat back on her haunches to examine it, raising her eyebrows. "That's..." She took the round metallic symbol out of her sleeve, and tried to fit it in, but it was too big.

"Another keyhole?"

"Maybe, but the key doesn't fit."

She stood up, and hesitated, looking at the wall and at the stairs behind. "Let's go upstairs first."

"Right behind you Captain."

Rukia smirked and led the way, walking slowly up the stairs. The first level was apparently empty, a handful of spartan rooms with nothing particularly interesting in sight. So was the second. On the third, they hit paydirt.

The top of the stairs led to a smaller level, with just two rooms. One of them was occupied. Yemon only saw a man standing with his back to them, wearing a completely black robe not unlike the ones the shinigami below were wearing. He talked to them even before they had walked in.

"This is a surprise. What brings the Captain of the Brotherhood to our humble Cathedral... And uninvited, I must point out."

Rukia didn't seem surprised by the question, or the fact that the man had felt them coming without even turning to look. "Third seat Iemura," she said. "We're here to see your Lieutenant."

"The Lieutenant is currently unavailable."

"So I heard. What exactly is she so busy with that she cannot see her own sister?"

Iemura turned to look over his shoulder, and Yemon had his first glance of the man's face. He saw a bony face with blonde hair poking out from under the hood, and a pair of shiny glasses hiding his eyes.

"I am afraid I am not authorized to say. I must ask that you leave peacefully. I will let her know of your request."

Rukia crossed her arms and dug her heels in. "We're not going anywhere until we get some answers." She, once again, took the circular key out of her sleeve, and helt it up high. "This was found on a guard at the Boneyard, who turned out to be working for Kurotsuchi Mayuri."

"Uh-huh," Iemura mumbled, raising an eyebrow. "I see. Thank you for letting us know, I will inform the Lieutenant."

"We'll tell her ourselves."

"Really," Iemura said, sighing heavily and turning away. "I had hoped it wouldn't have to come to this..."

The words had an immediate effect on Yemon, and he readied his bow as if by reflex. However, he never saw the attack. He felt an enormous impact on his face as he turned to glance towards the sudden appearance of reiatsu behind him, and was sent flying. He crashed through the stone wall at the top of the tower.

"Bakudō thirty-seven, hanging star!"

Rukia called out the kidō and moved out of the way in the blink of an eye, while unsheathing her Zanpakutō at the same time. While Yemon landed on the soft star-shaped barrier, she slashed the air with her Zanpakutō, bringing forth the shikai form without even calling its name. The blade transformed into a sword of pure white, with a long white ribbon attached to the pommel.

As she slashed, the ground started to glow in a pure white light.

"First dance, White Moon!" she shouted, jumping out of the room and landing atop a gargoyle on the nearest buttress. The glow intensified, and a column of ice shot up to the sky, encasing everything in the room itself.

As soon as she landed, the column shattered as a hail of bullets from a minigun cut through it like a scythe. The unexpected attack almost took her by surprise, and she jumped awkwardly away from the gargoyle as it crumbled into dust. Large chunks of ice fell from the tower, crashing on the ground below.

It was a long way to the bottom. The wastelanders were looking up at the tower with terrified surprise, many of them running away as fast as their legs would carry them.

"Hadō seventy-three, Twin Lotus Blue Fire, Crash Down!" Rukia shouted. She had raised a hand forward, pointing at the now roofless top of the tower, and as soon as she finished the call, a powerful blast of kidō shot from the palm of her hand, crashing down on the destroyed room with a tremendous roar.

She took an instant to look back at the suspending star, which was hanging under the arch of one of the buttresses and holding onto both the buttress and the side wall of the cathedral. Yemon still looked quite out of it.

"Yemon! Heads up!"

Rukia didn't stop for long enough to see if he had heeded her call. As soon as she touched down on the tower, there was a blur and a movement of reiatsu right in front of where she had landed, and more by instinct than anything else, she dodged what appeared to be a rather powerful punch by a hairsbreadth.

She had lost her balance though, and someone grabbed her and threw her with great strength, crashing through the very solid rock wall that held together the surviving column of the top of the tower. Rock fell and crumbled around her.

The unmistakeable sound of a minigun spinning followed, and bullets started to eat away at the debris, looking for the softer flesh under it. There was still no way to see where those bullets and attacks were coming from. A vague, distorted translucent form was all that could be seen.

Before the bullets could do much damage, a blue arrow flew through the air and crashed right on top of the invisible minigun. The weapon spluttered to a stop with a great noise of grinding metal and backfired bullets, and a howl preceded the weapon falling from invisible hands and becoming visible itself.

Yemon, too, landed on the half-blown room atop the tower.

_I can't see them too clearly, what the-_

His eyes followed the blur and managed to make the contour of a large humanoid punching towards him. His subconscious immediately thought of Super Mutants, but he couldn't tell, and his conscious mind was much too preoccupied with the incoming attack. As everything slowed down in his adrenalin rush, he prepared to dodge, but found himself unable to move. A red glow surrounded his body.

"Bakudō nine, Strike," Iemura had called, pointing at Yemon with an open palm.

The kidō completely immobilized him, and he could do nothing but look at the fist coming at his face.

And then he felt himself falling back. Something knocked the back of his knees, and as he fell he felt the kidō dissipating. The blurred, translucent fist passed just a few inches above his face, and was then kicked out of the way by a familiar boot. Longcoat and fedora. The mysterious figure that had been following him since their adventure at the Café had appeared again, and this time very much saved his face from a rather disagreeable encounter with a high-impact set of knuckles. He caught a glimpse of a pair of clear eyes under the fedora, but before he could say anything longer than a syllable, or register what colour exactly those eyes were, the stranger disappeared.

Just as his adrenalin rush crashed and everything sped up again. He managed to stop his backwards fall and regained his footing, immediately reaching back and grabbing his oversized knife. He pulled it out at the same time he called his one-handed Quincy bow and let loose a quick and erratic volley of arrows.

He was treated to a howl of pain not dissimilar to those of the Super Mutants. As soon as he had his knife out, he heard Iemura again.

"Hadō four-"

_Oh shit!_

He made a wide swipe with all his power, cutting through the resistance of what he thought was likely to be an invisible arm, and rushed Iemura as fast as he could.

"- Pale Lightning!"

Yemon was in no position to dodge. Iemura was pointing at him with one finger, and the spell shot from it as a thin but powerful lightning bolt. It crashed on Yemon's shoulder, pushing him back as he swung at the Shinigami.

His oversized knife, though, was big enough for it to hit his enemy. He felt the impact as the blade sliced through flesh and bone, and caught a glimpse of a splash of red as he was thrown back.

As he crashed on the ground, he heard Rukia's voice.

"Next dance, White Ripple!"

The surge of reiatsu accompanied the torrent of ice that shot from Rukia's Zanpakutō, engulfing the invisible Super Mutants and beyond. It broke off at the edge of the tower, and the best part of it fell to the ground below as the few wastelanders that were still around shouted in surprise, and started running away.

There was a short moment of tense silence, which was broken by the voice of Kiyone calling for Rukia.

"Captain! Captain!" she shouted as she made her way to the top of the tower at great speed.

"Up here!" Rukia called. She was making her way towards Yemon, jumping over the fallen debris and remains of the top of the tower. "What a mess..."

"Captain, what-"

Kiyone's voice died when she made it to the top, and witnessed the wholesale destruction of the place.

"Over here," Rukia called calmly. She was kneeling next to Yemon, who didn't look particularly happy. He had a big burnmark on his shoulder, visible where part of his Vault 14 shihakushō had been burned, and was sporting a considerable bruise on the left side of his face.

"Captain! What happened? Where's Sis?"

"I don't know, she wasn't in her her room," Rukia replied, gesturing with her chin towards the remains of the second room atop the tower. "Iemura set those on us and attacked us," she continued, pointing at the big block of ice. Inside, the invisible enemies had finally become visible; they looked like regular Super Mutants, but had grey skin instead of the usual green.

"What? Why! What-" Kiyone's questions stopped when she spotted Iemura laying on the ground not far from where they were. Without saying another word, she rushed at him and pulled him up, grabbing him by the collar. "Where is she! Where is sis!" she shouted. When Iemura didn't answer, she pulled him aside and crashed him on the block of ice, still holding him by the collar. "WHERE IS SHE!" She punched him on the face, and shook him vigorously. "TELL ME WHERE GODDAMMIT! WHERE-"

"Kiyone!" Rukia shoted, interrputing her tirade and grabbing her by the arm. "Stop!"

"Captain! H-"

"He's dead."

Kiyone's face snapped to complete surprise, and she took a second look at the man she was holding. She realized he had felt surprisingly light, and when she looked, she immediately saw why. She was only holding the upper half of his body, while the lower half had been left behind when she pulled. A trail of remains and blood followed the path he had pulled him through, and some of it had spilled on her own feet without her noticing.

She immediately let go of Iemura and took a step back, looking at the fallen shinigami and breathing fast and hard.

"Hey, hey, calm down," Rukia said, reaching out and grabbing her Lieutenant in a tight embrace. "We'll find Isane."

"W-What's happening Rukia?" Kiyone said, burying her face on her Captain's shoulder.

"We'll find out."

Yemon looked at the scene with some perplexity, until he heard someone else coming up the stairs. Tatsuki had made her way up, laden as she was with her bag and the plasma rifle, and looking rather stressed.

"Damn... stairs..." she muttered. She stopped once she made it to the last step, and took a look around before making her way to Yemon. "Jeez, very discrete you two."

"Don't blame me," Yemon replied, pointing at the ice. "Blame those things."

Tatsuki followed the gesture and saw the two grey-skinned Super Mutants encased in the ice. She furrowed her brow, and her hand found its way to her 10mm gun without her having to think about it. "Wow, so there were Super Mutants up here?"

"Invisible Super Mutants to boot."

"Invisible? How?"

"Buggered if I know," Yemon replied, throwing his hands in the air in annoyance. "This keeps getting worse and worse."

He stood up while Tatsuki hacked away at the ice with her combat knife, and made his way to the fallen shinigami. The scene was more than a bit gruesome, and it was clear that it had had some effect on the small Lieutenant. Rukia was giving her low-voiced reassurances.

Without having to stop and think about it, Yemon's eyes were looking at the fallen Shinigami, searching for anything he could use. When he realized what he was doing, he took a step back and shook his head.

_Sheesh, too much time in the wasteland..._

His thoughts were interrupted whewn something cold hit his face bruise.

"OW! Ow, ow, what the-"

"Just some ice," Tatsuki said, pressing an ice-filled cloth bundle to his face. "It'll do ya good," she finished with a smirk.

"I guess, thanks," Yemon replied, grabbing the bundle and holding it to his face.

"What happened?"

"He tried to nail me with kidō while the Super Mutants were keeping us busy, but- Oh, right! Did you see the guy in the longcoat on your way up?"

"Huh? Wha... Oh, that guy? Again? And up here?"

"Yeah."

Tatsuki made a questioning gesture with her eyebrows, but Yemon could only shrug. They still had no idea who he was.

"Anyway," Tatsuki said. "What are we going to- Hey, what's this?"

Her eyes had fallen on a small item on the ground. Making sure she didn't step onto the bloodied remains, she reached for the fallen lower half of the body and pullsed something out. It looked a lot like the key Yachiru had stolen, only this one was black and much smaller.

"Another key?" she offered, showing it to Yemon.

"Could- Right! That's the key!"

"Huh?"

"Captain!" Yemon called, taking the small metallic circlet and showing it to Rukia. "I think this is a key for that wall we were looking at before."

"Huh? What?" Kiyone said, looking at both Yemon and Rukia alternatively. "What's that Captain?"

"You're right, it could be," Rukia agreed. She turned to address Kiyone. "You know the room on the other side of the cathedral?"

"You mean the library?"

"Yeah. It was walled up, but had a hole to fit one of those," Rukia explained, pointing at the key Yemon was holding. "So-"

"That's where Sis is!" Kiyone interrupted. She sprang to action immediately, snatching the small key from Yemon's hand and rushing to the stairs. "They're keeping her prisoner there! I'm coming Sis!"

"Kiyone, wait!" Rukia called, to no avail. She shook her head and looked at Yemon and Tatsuki. "Let's go."

"Right."

They took after Kiyone and ran down the stairs as fast as they could, but didn't catch up with the small woman until they made it to the wall at the bottom of the stairs. Kiyone was searching for the place to put the key.

"Kiyone, wait. It's down the midde!" Rukia said, rushing to stop her Lieutenant before she smashed her fist on the wall.

"By the way," Yemon said, looking at the two Shinigami from the stairs. "What happened to all the people in there?"

"They ran off," Tatsuki replied, smirking. "As soon as everything started shaking and crashing."

"Uh, it was that bad?"

"Oh yeah."

They made their way to the wall, where Rukia was fussing with what they had thought was the lock, and as they did, they were shoked out of their socks when a voice spoke less than half a step behind them.

"What are you doing?"

They both gave a yell and a start, and immediately turned back while reaching for their weapons. But the mat of pink hair and the accompanying giggles stopped them before they drew.

"Bloody hell, Yachiru!" Yemon said. "Do you always have to sneak up on us?"

"Tee-hee, you're funny!"

"Sure, sure," Yemon replied, taking a deep breath. Next to Yachiru, Dogmeat barked once as in agreement, but not making it too clear who he was agreeing with.

Before they could say anything else, there was a loud snapping sound behind them, followed by a rasping sound as Rukia pushed the wall to the side. As soon as there was a big enough gap, Kiyone shot through it and disappeared.

"Dammit, wait!" Rukia called, giving the wall one last push and following her Lieutenant.

Without a word, Yemon and Tatsuki went after them. The wall connected to a second room, which had a narrow set of stairs disappearing underground. Yemon cleared them in four jumps, and ended up inside a small underground room. The only light was coming from a weak lightbulb hooked up to a fusion battery in the middle of it, and the walls were lined with bookcases populated by armfuls of badly damaged books.

Tatsuki finally joined him after a reluctant climb down, followed by Yachiru and Dogmeat.

"Captain, she's not here!" Kiyone protested. The room was small enough that just a quick glance was enough to search the whole thing, and Kiyone kept frantically looking side to side as if she was expecting her sister to pop out of thin air.

"I can see that," Rukia replied in a low voice.

"What do we do now? Rukia! I-"

Rukia raised her hand to stop Kiyone's tirade. "Let's not panic here." She looked at Yemon and Tatsuki, who had joined the two of them. "Has any of you heard anything at all about Isane up there?"

"No! Ca-"

"Kiyone," Rukia said, silencing her Lieutenant. She looked at Yemon and Tatsuki, but they just shook their respective heads. "Okay, we're going to have to _ask_ about her. To the other shinigami of the 4th."

"I can do that!" Kiyone said, but Rukia reached out and grabbed the back of her shihakusho before she ran off.

"Gently," Rukia said. "If..."

There was a pause, which was interrupted by Kiyone. "If?"

Rukia looked at Yemon, and a moment later, he seemed to grasp what Rukia was meaning to say. "Wait. Where _is_ everyone?"

"Huh? They ran off when the fight started up there, I told you that," Tatsuki said.

"That's my point," Yemon replied, looking at Rukia and getting a nod of agreement. "Why would they run instead of coming to help?"

"Huh," Tatsuki said, with a surprised face. She gave Rukia an inquisitive look. "Good point. So?"

"They're scared," Rukia said.

"Of us?"

"_No_."

Rukia didn't explain any further, but the answer was obvious. Two Super Mutants, while bloody dangerous, weren't enough to keep a whole Vault of shinigami in check. Much less if there was at least a Lieutenant in the picture.

A dense silence settled, and it was Yachiru who interrupted it.

"Boooooo-ring," she said with a pout. "I'm going back outside."

"Yachiru, don't-" Rukia said, fruitlessly trying to stop her. She disappeared in an instant. "Friggin'..."

Yemon shook his head with a knowing smile, and looked at Dogmeat. "Why don't you go keep an eye on her, boy?"

The mutt barked once, and took off after Yachiru, running up the stairs and barking loudly.

"That dog is amazingly smart," Rukia said.

"No kidding!" Tatsuki replied, and pointed at Yemon. "It's uncanny how these two understand each other."

"Okay, so, next. Any _other_ ideas?" Rukia said, and continued before Kiyone could say anything. "Other than going upstairs and beating people up."

While the others talked, Yemon took some time to examine the bookshelves, casting the Pip-boy light all around. Much to his disappointment, the books were in a terrible condition, most with pages that merely crumbled to dust when opened.

_Shame, I wouldn't have minded... Um... Wait a minute._

His eyes caught a glimpse of a metallic end on one of the bookshelves, which wasn't shared with the rest. The entire back of the shelf seemed to be embedded into the wall with a reinforced metallic sheet, much too solid to be coincidence. He knelt down and put his face close, trying to divine a gap that a very slight breeze seemed to hint at.

"Yemon!" Tatsuki called.

"What?" He leaned back and looked at the others. All three of them had their eyes fixed on them.

"Weren't you listening? What are you doing?"

"Well," he said, drawing a smirk as he stood up. "Take a look."

He inhaled deeply, planted his feet firmly, and pushed with all his strength on the side of the shelf. With less difficulty than he anticipated, the shelf slid to the side, revealing a secret passage behind it.

After a heartbeat of complete silence, all the others rushed towards the secret entrance at the same time, piling up to see where the opening led to. A tunnel, with smooth walls and flat, well-flattened floor, leading into the darkness.

It was Yemon who broke the mesmerized silence after a long observation.

"Well, damn, that's where the Vault is."

The others turned to look at him in surprise.

"What?" was the unanimous question.

Yemon looked at Kiyone and raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Isn't it obvious? I thought the overseer was your sister."

"I... I mean, I've never been to Sis' Vault, she told me they don't use it anymore! I didn't even know this was here!"

"So where did you think the Vault was?"

"I... I don't know! Why are you asking me that!" Kiyone retorted hotly.

While he didn't say anything, Yemon's furrowed brow look annoyed Kiyone quite noticeably. Rukia managed to get peace with a very simple gesture, demanding silence, and with another led the party down the corridor.

_Guess it's better to stay quiet, _Yemon thought.

The tunnel was comfortingly close for Yemon, but Tatsuki fell to the back of the group and only followed reluctantly. There was no sound other than the soft scraping of feet on rock as they walked along, barely seeing more than a few meters ahead thanks to Yemon's Pip-boy light. They moved on without a word until a distant, guttural growl stopped them on their tracks.

"I don't like the sound of that," Yemon muttered.

Rukia gestured for silence again, and they all waited.

It wasn't long before two glowing spots could be made in the distance. They all reached for their weapons, assuming ready stances.

Something came flying from the end of the corridor, and as everyone dodged, a dense ball of green spit fell behind them. While it passed, the Pip-boy's geiger counter started croaking.

"Radioactive!" Yemon called.

Weapons were drawn. And then their enemy walked into the Pip-boy's light.

It could have been a hollow. It definitely had a mask. But it was nothing like any hollow Yemon had ever seen. The upper bodies, for it had two, were a mix of humanoid and some sort of dog-like creature. It had a large, misshapen torso with six human arms that served as legs, and a myriad of tentacles blooming out of its underside and slithering over the ground. It was so large that the heads were almost touching the top of the cave.

The dog-like head of the beast started growling as soon as it came into the light.

"What are we waiting for?" Kiyone shouted. She raised her right arm, pointing forward with her right hand's open palm, and grabbed her right wrist with her left hand. A small, red ball of glowing red reiatsu appeared in front of her. "Ye lord! Mask of-"

"Stop it!" Rukia said, swatting Kiyone's hands and stopping her incantation. "You want this place to come down on us?"

As if it was its cue, the beast let out a roar and charged forward. Rukia raised her hand and pointed at it. "Hadō one, Shō!"

A pulse of reiatsu shot from Rukia's extended finger and hit the beast like a wave, pushing it back and making it crash on its bottom.

"Right!" Rukia called. "We have to-"

Her orders stopped when she looked back and saw Yemon holding up his Quincy bow. The arrow he was holding was painfully bright, and its glow kept growing brighter and brighter. All while the Pip-boy croaked like a chorus of frogs on crack and speed.

"This... won't... collapse... anything..." Yemon muttered through clenched teeth.

Without further explanation, Rukia turned to the beast and started muttering an incantation. "Bakudō eighty-one, Splitting Void!" she shouted. A barrier appeared between them and the beast, and the latter smashed its face against it and, once again, was sent tumbling back.

Both its heads let out a ferocious roar, and it charged ahead once more. The crash on the barrier was a lot more spectacular this time, and the whole grotto trembled at the impact. Dust and pebbles fell from the walls.

"Yemon!" Tatsuki shouted.

"Almost... there..." Yemon muttered.

The beast was now relentlessly pounding at the barrier, and it was starting to shatter. So were some of the weaker points of the corridor's walls, and the chunks that were falling from it weren't just tiny pebbles anymore.

When a rock the size of her head almost fell on her, Tatsuki turned to Yemon and yelled at the top of her lungs. "COME ON!"

"Now!" Yemon replied.

With a gesture, Rukia made the badly cracked barrier disappear, and at the same time Yemon let go of his arrow. There was a bang and a blast of reiatsu as his bow went out of control, but the arrow itself flew true at such speed that it looked like it had blinked out of existance. The resulting impact created a torrent of reiatsu that soon reduced the monster to ash, and threw everyone in the party down to the ground.

The blast was followed by a short-lived increase in the pace of the Pip-boy's geiger counter's croaking, but it soon died down, as the last of the monster's flesh turned to ash.

"Ow, ow, OW!" Yemon cried out. He was curled up on the ground, grabbing his left hand tightly with his right. "Dammit all that fucking hurts!"

"Sheesh, took you long enough!" Tatsuki said, sitting up and looking at Yemon. "You hurt yourself too?"

"It's bloody hard to accumulate reiatsu and let it go without blowing my bow up!" he complained.

"Sheesh," Tatsuki sighed, shaking her head. "I should've shot it myself."

"Now, now," Rukia said in a conciliatory voice. She was already up, and offered Tatsuki a hand. "It worked just fine. This was probably the best choice."

"If you say so..." Tatsuki muttered.

After a short rest, they reached the entrance to the vault soon, without any more surprises. The enormous doors were open, and the top floor was completely deserted. Like in the other shinigami vaults, Yemon didn't see any stairs anywhere, only a lift leading down.

The lift was barely big enough for all of them, and it was quite cramped inside.

"How far down are we going?" Yemon said, with his hand hovering over the controls.

"Let's go down one level, I don't want any surprises over my head."

"One level down," Yemon agreed.

Elevator rides are awkward even in the best of times, but for a heavily armed gang that barely fit inside the cab it was extremely uncomfortable. The first level was surprisingly deep, and they all kept shifting and moving all the way down.

Once the cab stopped, Yemon reached back for his knife, and the rest imitated his gesture reaching for their respective weapons.

He thought he was ready for anything, but the scene they found proved him wrong.

"What... Ugh, what's that smell?" Tatsuki said.

"I think I'm going to be sick," Kiyone added.

Yemon didn't manage a single step out of the cab, even though he was the one in front and ws blocking everyone's way. The elevator opened to a typical Vault corridor, with metallic walls and floor, and artificial lighting all the way through.

Only the walls were painted with streaks of dark, dried-up blood. Human remains were scattered everywhere, pieces of flesh and skin, in varying degrees of decomposition; some looked disturbingly fresh too. The smell of decay was almost overpowering. Mixed with all the human remains were piles and piles of some strange biological goo.

"Come on, you're in the way!" Tatsuki said, pushing Yemon ahead and walking off the lift. Like Yemon had done, she stopped on her tracks when she saw the spectacle laid out before them.

The others followed. After only a few seconds, Kiyone had to run back and throw up in a corner.

"What is all this..." Rukia managed to mutter.

Before they could figure anything else, a scream of terror caught their attention It came from deep down the corridor, and it sounded like a human voice. Without hesitation, all of them ran ahead. The voice was calling for... _someone _to let him go. Yemon punched the controls of an automated door, and the party busted into the room almost crashing on each other.

The scene was quite strange. A large, green-skinned shinigami was standing in the middle of the room. He had a large, bulbous head, with a cleft in the middle and a huge mouth drawn into a grin. He was wearing a labcoat over his shihakushō, and was holding a clipboard. In front of him a Super Mutant was holding a wastelander up in the air, holding him by the head with one of its enormous hands.

For a fraction of a second nobody moved. Then, Rukia disappeared, and appeared across the room, holding her sword high as if she had just finished a slash. The arm of the Super Mutant split in half, dropping the wastelander, and soon his body followed, falling to the ground in two pieces.

"What are you doing? What's this!" the green-skinned shinigami shouted in an indignant voice.

The wastelander quickly stood up and ran to hide behind the newcomers, and right on cue Kiyone pounced at the shinigami, punching him on the face and then pinning him down on the ground.

"Where's my sister!" she shouted.

"What? I have no ide-"

His speech stopped when Yemon put his oversized knife against his throat. "Start talking."

The shinigami looked at Kiyone and Yemon alternatively, breaking into a cold sweat but not saying a word.

After a few uncomfortable seconds, Rukia walked up to them and pulled them back. "Hiyosu," she said, speaking in a cold voice. "What are you doing here? What is Kurotsuchi up to?"

Hiyosu's sweating increased, and he babbled in a low voice without managing to say a single word. They stood around him for several seconds, building up pressure but not touching him

"Yemon!" Tatsuki's voice interrupted. It came from the other end of the room. "Come here, quick!"

Yemon looked back. There was another door on the side of the room, it was open but he couldn't see Tatsuki. He gave Rukia a questioning look, and the shinigami Captain did a simple gesture back with her head, not peeling her eyes off Hiyosu.

"Go ahead," she said.

With a nod and a lingering look at the large, green-skinned shinigami, Yemon took off and rushed to the back of the room. The door connected to a second room behind it; on the other side, he found Tatsuki standing next to a computer terminal. Behind her, there were several small cells, each locked with a translucent orange barrier, and each containing a handful of wastelanders.

"What the hell..."

"Can you open these?" Tatsuki said, pointing at the terminal.

"Please, let us go!" one of the wastelanders cried out. Others joined his call, and soon there was a chorus of voices asking them for help.

Yemon gestured for everyone to remain quiet, and approached one of the cells to take a closer look. He was suddenly reminded of the cells he had seen back in Vault 12, and his heart skipped a beat with the idea that they may come equipped with spirit particle filtering systems. His suddenly serious expression silenced the wastelanders inside the cell he was examining, and nobody dared say a word.

_Dammit, it's the same tech, but I don't think it's got a filter..._

His taciturn demeanour seemed to have an effect on the wastelanders, and when he sighed and turned away, they started crying for his help again, begging for him not to abandon them.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm on it," Yemon said, stopping in front of the terminal. He fired up the screen, and started clicking away.

While he worked, Tatsuki walked to his side and spoke in a low voice. "What's wrong Yemon? Anything I should be worried about?"

"No, nothing," he muttered, and pointed at the cells with his thumb. "When I explored Vault 12, there were lots of cells just like these, and they had spirit particle filtering systems. None of them were in working order though."

"So these-"

"No, they are just cells. No filtering system," he finished, getting back to hammering the keyboard. In just a few minutes he had gained access, and was able to take the barriers down.

His work was received with a chorus of cheers and thanks. But before they could run off, Tatsuki stepped in their way blocking the door.

"Wait, wait, everyone calm down. We've-"

***BOOM***

The ground shook with the explosion coming from the room behind them, where Kiyone and Rukia had been working on Hiyosu. Yemon and Tatsuki looked at each other, and they rushed out of the room as fast as their legs would carry them.

They stopped as soon as they were through the door. The entire room was covered with fresh blood and green-skinned remains, spread all over the room, and both Rukia and Kiyone had taken cover behind a large computer terminal. While unharmed, they hadn't avoided the rain of gore too well.

"What the hell did you two do?" Tatsuki shouted in surprise.

"Nothing!" Kiyone protested, shaking herself as she stood up.

"Kurotsuchi," Rukia clarified. "As soon as he said a word about Kurotsuchi's plans, he started to bloat up and... Well, as you see."

Yemon's expression turned to disgust, looking at the mess in the room. "Ewwww. Suicide?"

"More likely _suicided_," Rukia replied.

Behind them, some of the wastelanders were peeking from behind the door.

"What's that?" Rukia said.

"More of..." Yemon said, and remembered something as he spoke. "Where did that guy go? The one you rescued, Rukia."

It took a moment for Rukia to remember, and she looked around with the same surprise Yemon showed. "No idea... He ran?"

"Can't blame him." He turned to the wastelanders. "Okay, listen up. Down the corridor that way is the lift. There's no one guarding and the door's open, so get out in an orderly fashion, got it?"

Several faces nodded, and they immediately made a beeline for the exit.

"What were they doing back there?" Rukia inquired, looking at them go.

"Beats me, but there's only one way to find out," Yemon replied, standing in front of the computer terminal. He sighed and tried to pick some of the fresh gore out of the keyboard and screen, and started typing away.

"What are you doing? We don't have time for this!" Kiyone protested.

"You're right," Rukia said. "Yemon, we can do this later."

"Just a minute..." Yemon muttered. "Huh. _Purification_. Rings any bells?"

He looked at Rukia and Kiyone, but all he got were headshakes and shrugs. Yemon took a few more seconds to do a quick browse through the data and, seeing as there was way too much of it, he simply pilled the data cable out of the Pip-boy, and connected it to the terminal.

"Just a quick download," he said, looking at Kiyone, who was puffing her cheeks in annoyance.

* * *

><p>It didn't take more than a few minutes for Yemon to be done with the terminal. In the meantime, Tatsuki used the chance to continue exploring the level, finding nobody else. What she found, which was somewhat disturbing, was a room full of way too oversized bunks. Big enough that, maybe, they could be useful for eight-feet tall Super Mutants.<p>

"There's more of them," Rukia said, listening to Tatsuki's description as they boarded the lift.

"Looks like it."

"Where to?" Yemon inquired, hand by the lift's controls.

"Down one, we're clearing this place level by level," Rukia replied.

Yemon pressed the '3' button, but nothing happened. He pressed it again repeatedly, but the lift refused to budge. He furrowed his brow, put his finger on the '4' button, and gave Rukia a questioning look. The Captain replied with a nod, and Yemon pushed it.

Nothing.

"Sheesh, are they locked?" Tatsuki said, annoyed at being in such a cramped space.

"I don't see any locks or card readers," Yemon muttered. He gave up on the '4', and went for the last floor, '5'.

This time, the doors closed and the lift started to move down.

"Guess the decision is made for us," Yemon said.

"Be ready to move out," Rukia said, and gave Yemon a significant look.

He nodded in agreement. _Better not stand like an idiot in front of the door again... Whatever we may find._

For a second, he wished he hadn't thought that. He wasn't particularly superstitious, but the concept of tempting fate, and how it was a bad idea, was starting to worm its way into his psyche. The lift took a disturbingly long time to reach the bottom, and with every passing second, Tatsuki looked more and more distressed.

_She'll be fine when the fighting starts. If there's any fighting to do._

As soon as the lift slowed down, Yemon reached for his knife, and Rukia repeated the gesture with her Zanpakutō. Yemon pointed with his chin at the side of the door he was going to rush, the Captain nodded in agreement, and as soon as the doors opened, they both took off like a blur.

Two Super Mutants were guarding each side of the lift. Yemon didn't even have a chance to look at what was around, he had pulled his knife out and only had eyes for the enemy in front.

Tatsuki and Kiyone did have a chance to look.

The lift opened to an enormous room, big enough that it could have rivalled the interior of the cathedral in size. It was circular, carved out in the stone with pillars reinforcing the top all around. A circular platform went around the wall of the room, which the lift had opened to. The top of the dome-like room was out of view, and only the bottom had lights chasing the shadows away, and all they could see were remains literally scattered everywhere. Human remains, more of the strange goo that seemed to be plastered everywhere in the Vault, remains of other creatures they couldn't identify.

Tatsuki's attention was diverted by a chorus of Super Mutant voices raising to call for attention at the intruders.

Kiyone's didn't. She only had eyes for the center of the room. There was an enormous hole in the ground, like a pit. A Super Mutant pushed a human inside, and his cries of terror were followed by a guttural roar and scream, the likes of which were familiar to any shinigami who had ever faced a hollow.

But that wasn't what kept her attention. Standing in front of the pit, with her back to them, was a single shinigami. Very tall, a slender figure clad in a black shihakushō and topped with short silver hair.

"Isane! Sis!" Kiyone called. Without even thinking about it, she jumped over the railing of the platform.

"No, wait!" Tatsuki shouted, too late to stop the girl. She followed to the railing, and saw the shinigami land below with the help of shunpo, running towards the center of the room at full speed. "Dammit all!"

She didn't have time to think about anything else. It was much too high for her to jump, and moreover, she saw that the two Super Mutants that were in the center of the room had caught sight of them.

And one of them had pulled out a rocket launcher.

"Shit, shit, shit!"

While she cursed, Yemon and Rukia were making their way along the platform, fighting Super Mutants as they went. Tatsuki pulled her plasma rifle out, aimed very carefully as one of the brutes raised his rocket launcher, and pressed the trigger while praying that she had aimed properly with that thing.

The weirdest thing about that gun was that there was no feedback. No recoil, no sound, nothing. The ball of plasma fired from the tree-pronged muzzle, and to her relief, hit the Super Mutant square on the chest. Her enemy howled in agony and was sent tumbling backwards, until, with a final and unfortunate step, he walked into the pit and fell down to his demise.

His fall was followed by an explosion that shook the ground under their feet. Given the roar of pain and distress that followed, the... _whatever_ inside the pit hadn't liked it either.

Meanwhile, Kiyone and Isane were having a conversation. When Isane had turned at the sound of her sister's voice, the latter had felt a chill run down her spine and had stopped a few steps away from her sister.

Isane's face looked extremely worn down, craggy and bony in the extreme. She had dark bags under her eyes that betrayed a deep-set lack of sleep. But what scared Kiyone the most was the smile she was sporting. A wide, open smile, much too wide and much too open. It had the smell of _crazy_ about it.

"S-Sis, what's... What's going on? Why... What happened?"

Both of them seemed oblivious to the craziness and carnage that was engulfing the room. Kiyone only had eyes for her sister. Isane... was anyone's guess.

"She will return," Isane said, speaking in a raspy voice that didn't hide the world of fanaticism that the phrase carried in her head.

"Who? What are you talking about?"

"Captain Unohana," Isane continued. It was at that point that the Super Mutant Tatsuki had shot fell into the pit with a full compliment of live rockets, and the roar that followed the explosion seemed to liven up Isane's crazy smile even more. "He found it. Gave it to us. It can purify the wasteland. And when it does, the Captain will return."

"_Who_ gave you _what_?" Kiyone insisted. She was clutching her stomach, she felt like something cold and heavy had set in it.

"Kurotsuchi Mayuri. He found it. Minazuki. Minazuki is alive. Captain Unohana... She is alive!"

The second Super Mutant joined the first one at the bottom of the pit, after he and Tatsuki had a very frank exchange of ideas, which involved lots of ammo and more than a few loud curses. Like with the one that had preceded him, the live ammo that went off once he hit the bottom seemed to displease the monster inside.

The rumble that followed wasn't as short lived as before, and it continued, getting louder and louder. Kiyone realized that the monster was trying to make its way up. And succeeding. When it appeared, the cold sensation inside Kiyone intensified.

_That's not Minazuki_.

She had seen Isane's Captain's shikai before. Her Zanpakutō assumed the form of a giant, one-eyed manta ray-like creature with green skin and a huge mouth. That thing had a wide shape, one eye, green skin, and a huge mouth.

A huge mouth with enormous, sword-like sharp teeth. A single bloodshot gigantic eye filled with malice. And, while no expert, Kiyone was quite sure manta rays didn't have sharp claws to craw their way out of a pit.

"Minazuki!" Isane called loudly, with a terrifying cheer in her voice.

The beast had several bleeding wounds, courtesy of the explosions, and looked none-too-pleased about them too. It let out a mighty roar, and without hesitation, opened its mouth wide and lunged at Isane.

The shinigami didn't even move. She raised her arms, almost as if she was welcoming what was about to happen.

"Sis!" Kiyone shouted.

She took a step much too late. The beast crashed on the ground face first as its mouth engulfed Isane, and then pulled back taking a bite out of the rock as well.

"Minazuki! Purify me!" Isane could be heard shouting. "Captain Uno-"

***CRUNCH***

A bite of the beast silenced Isane with a terrifying crunch. Blood poured out between its teeth.

"NOOOOOOOOO!" Kiyone shouted, a blood-curling cry of despair that boomed through the enormous room with an endless echo. She could only watch in horror as the creature continued chewing. A maimed forearm fell from its open maw, dropping to the ground with a wet splash.

Like it had been a signal, Kiyone's demeanour changed as the freeze in her body turned to unbearable, burning rage. She raised her right arm with palm facing forward, and her reiatsu spiked so hard that the pressure fell all around the room. A ball of kidō appeared in front of her hand. "You bastard! I'm going to rip you to shreds! Hadō thirty-one, Red Fire Cannon!"

* * *

><p>"Rukia!"<p>

Tatsuki's yell took Rukia's attention from the fight. She and Yemon were running towards her on the platform, after having finished the last of the Super Mutants. She was taken aback by the Captain's expression, she had a hard look that stopped her on her tracks.

Rukia turned to the fight again without saying a word.

"What are you doing, we have to help her!" Tatsuki protested.

She raised her plasma rifle, but Rukia stopped her by extending her arm and putting her hand on Tatsuki's chest.

"No."

"What? Are you crazy?"

A kidō explosion stopped the conversation. The monster had been thrown back by Kiyone's attack, but it was proving to be extremely resilient. It had caught the small shinigami a couple of times too, and she was bleeding from two deep wounds on her torso courtesy of the beast's claws.

Like before, the entire room shook with the clash of combat, and this time, loud cracks and noises followed. Yemon followed the noises, and saw that several of the pillars were starting to collapse.

"We have to help her or we'll be buried alive!" he shouted, reaching back for his knife.

He was stopped when Rukia, much like she had done with Tatsuki, put her arm in front of him. Only she grabbed his shihakushō, pressing hard. Yemon realized at that moment just how much tension Rukia was bottling up.

"Yemon, listen up," she said, speaking in a low tone between clenched teeth. "Whenever we do battle, there are two kinds of fights. Ones where we fight for life, and others where we fight for pride. Never confuse the two. She's fighting for pride. If you save her now... You'll kill her pride forever."

"But-"

Rukia's grip on Yemon's shihakushō intensified. "Do you think I like this? Again? But she yelled, she told me to stand back. She's fighting... She's fighting for her sister, and herself. And everything that happened here."

Yemon didn't say another word, and could only watch the fight. He pondered why Kiyone wasn't using her Zanpakutō, but he had to admit her kidō and hakuda were exceptional. She was dodging the monster's latest charge, and a moment later she sent it flying with a spinning kick to its ugly face. It crashed on a pillar, and the impact was strong enough to break it in half.

Snaps and a loud rumble followed.

_Oh shit._

"Kiyone!" Yemon shouted. "We have to run or we'll be buried alive."

"I'M NOT GOING ANYWHERE!" she shouted. "YOU GO!" She extended her hand again, and her mouth moved as she recited another incantation.

While she did, the rumble intensified, and large chunks of rock started falling from the ceiling, crashing as the vault collapsed on them.

"Dammit, Rukia!" Yemon shouted, grabbing the hand that was holding his shihakushō. "We can't just stay here!"

Rukia didnt say a word. Her other hand grabbed Tatsuki, and a moment later she was dragging them at full speed with shunpo. She didn't even wait for the lift, she jumped in and blew its top with a kick, jumping up along the shaft from wall to wall as the giant room collapsed below them. It was all a blur for Yemon, he had never seen anyone do shunpo that fast.

_Uh, Yachiru probably-_

The light of the outside nearly blinded him, unexpected as it had appeared so quickly. They had made it out of the vault at record speed. After getting some distance, Rukia let go of them and they were sent crashing to the ground, while the white-haired Captain fell to her knees and hands.

She was breathing heavily, working hard to get air past a constriction on her throat. When Yemon looked, he saw that tears were dripping down from her face.

"Why..." she said, speaking in a thin voice. "Why does it... have to happen again... why again... why..."

The ground started to shake under their feet, and the cathedral was swaying in a very dangerous way. They were far enough from it that they'd be safe even if it collapsed, and it looked like it was indeed going to collapse any minute. He took a quick glance, and saw that all the wastelanders and all members of the 4th that had been on the surface were even farther away from the cathedral than they were.

When the rumbling appeared to have died down, there was an enormous crash, and the cathedral exploded as a giant pillar of red light shot up from the ground. The blast threw Yemon and Tatsuki to the ground again. Yemon glanced from the gound, and for a moment he thought that the explosion looked like a giant sword had pierced through the ground. Then the pillar of kidō exploded.

Rukia had jumped to her feet, and stood her ground looking at the explosion without moving an inch or saying a word. Even as rocks and pieces of masonry fell all around them. Panic was spreading all around, with the wastelanders and the members of the 4th running around like headless chickens.

Then, after the explosion had cleared, there was only silence.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>Come to think of it, I probably could have gotten three chapters out of this single one no problem. And kept a more regular schedule that way. It just kept getting longer and longer, and I didn't find a good spot to split it.

So there you have it. _This_ one I had planned since the very beginning. In other cases I sometimes have only a vague idea of what's going to happen, and figure it out as I write. Typically, I have a few options in my head, and just choose which ones feel better as I write. This chapter, though, I had plotted it out precisely as you have just read since I made the first outline of the fic.

If you played Fallout 1, the Cathedral is where the Master lives, the Big Bad, the top honcho. Not here, the 4th just fit too well as the Children of the Cathedral, and I didn't want Kurotsuchi here.

By elimination, if you know Fallout 1, and have been following the clues, you probably suspected what was going to happen here, and can guess what's coming next. Though I still have a couple of tricks up my sleeve, some more foreshadowed than others.

You probably can't tell from this, but Isane is likely my favourite of the "secondaries" in Bleach (I don't consider Tatsuki a secondary). So it was more than a bit weird to write this chapter, I've got to say.


	27. The Path of Inevitability

"What has mood to do with it? You fight when the necessity arises—no matter the mood! Mood's a thing for cattle or making love or playing the baliset. It's not for fighting."

**- Gurney Halleck,** _Dune._

* * *

><p>Tatsuki looked at Rukia and sighed, reaching down to scratch Dogmeat behind the ears. The white-haired shinigami had been sitting at the edge of the crater, what was left where the Cathedral used to be, staring down at the half-burned wooden badge her Lieutenant had been wearing.<p>

It was all they had found of her. Rukia had only offered a vague explanation about a forbidden sacrifice kidō. And then hadn't said another word.

She turned the other way, and looked at the others. Yemon was still in the same place, sitting cross-legged with his back to a large piece of masonry, and fiddling with the Pip-boy. He was searching the information he had downloaded from the computer terminal, with the single-minded determination only he was capable of.

And Yachiru was still acting as the mother hen for the crowd of children, though the atmosphere had changed substantially. Yemon had been the one to find the reason for it. In the aftermath of the explosion, and on finding out what really had been happening from the prisoners that had freed in the Vault, the wastelanders had turned on the 4th's shinigami. In the crossfire, the little girl that had given Yemon the wilted flower had been caught in the head with a rock.

That was the last straw that prompted Yemon's current single-mindedness. He had looked at the dead girl like a statue for several minutes, dug a grave for her without a word, and started his current task with just a mumbled explanation.

As if reading her thoughts, Dogmeat whined and licked her hand.

"What a disaster," she said with a sigh, and scratched the dog's muzzle. "Go bother Yemon for a bit and see if he snaps out of it. I'm going to talk with Rukia."

Dogmeat barked once, wagging his tail, and took off towards Yemon. Tatsuki flashed a smile at the dog's actions, and made her own way towards Rukia.

The Captain didn't move a muscle. She was still sitting in the same position, with her eyes fixed on the half-burned Lieutenant badge. Most of the number had been burned off, and the only thing that could still be made was the division's insignia, in the shape of a Snowdrop flower.

When Tatsuki got to her side, she quietly sat down on the same piece of debris, and waited several seconds before saying anything.

"Want to talk?" she said. She reached out and put her hand on Rukia's shoulder, giving it a gently squeeze.

Rukia took her time before answering. "It's my fault," she said, speaking in a low voice.

"It's not your fault," Tatsuki retorted. "She wanted to kill that thing herself, you-"

"It's a curse. I'm a curse."

"What? Rukia, stop that! You're not a curse, what are you talking about?" Tatsuki only paused for a moment, trying to think fast. "You said it yourself, it was a fight for pride. You couldn't-"

"Pride!" Rukia spat out the word, like it was a bite of bitter fruit. "What good is pride? All it's ever done is take people from me! To hell with pride!"

"And what about what Kiyone wanted?"

"At least she'd be alive to hate me!"

Tatsuki didn't answer. Rukia had been steadily raising her voice, and in the last shout she had stood up in front of her. After a short pause, the shinigami wiped her eyes with the back of her hands and sat down again.

"Look at me. What a sad excuse for a Captain I am."

"Don't say that," Tatsuki replied calmly, reaching out and putting her arm over Rukia's shoulders. "So you're the boss, yeah. But don't take the weight of the world on your shoulders. Share a bit with us, won't you?"

For an answer, Rukia sighed and leaned sideways on Tatsuki. The latter gave her a gentle squeeze, and managed to relax a bit. Yet, she started to have a strange sense of displacement. Like it wasn't real.

_Rukia... Damn, to think she was out here. All these years. Sheesh, now I want to ask her what she meant with the losing people to pride thing._

A peal of barking broke her thoughts, and jolted Rukia up too. They both turned to see Dogmeat chasing after Yemon, who was walking straight at them with a strong, wide step.

"He looks..." Rukia said, letting her voice trail.

"Determined," Tatsuki finished for her.

"I was going to say angry."

"Same difference."

He had his brow furrowed, and his eyes fixed on Tatsuki. He stopped just a step away from her, not saying a word.

"What?" Tatsuki said.

Yemon raised his left arm, showing the screen of the Pip-boy to the two women. It was showing its map of the wasteland, green-on-green with several markers spread around.

"I found him."

Both Tatsuki and Rukia opened their eyes wide in surprise, and it was Rukia who spoke.

"Kurotsuchi?"

"Yes."

Without even thinking, Rukia jumped to her feet, and Tatsuki followed to stop her before she took off. "Wait," she said, turning to Yemon. He looked like he wasn't done. "And?"

"And I'm going to find him."

Tatsuki furrowed her brow. "What's going on?"

"Do you know what he was doing here?"

"No?"

Rukia had stopped her attempted escape, and was listening to the conversation, with great interest but in complete silence. She had her eyes fixed on Yemon, and was looking at him like she was seeing something in him for the first time.

"That monster," Yemon said, pointing at the hole where Vault 4 had been and lowering his left hand with it. "Apparently, Kurotsuchi made it. Some kind of modified hollow that only eats spiritual beings. He had convinced the Overseer here that it was some sort of purifying spirit-"

"Minazuki," Rukia said, interrupting Yemon. She continued when both Tatsuki and Yemon turned to her. "That was the name of Captain Unohana's Zanpakutō. The Captain of the 4th. It was a tremendously powerful healing Zanpakutō."

"I see," Yemon said.

"And?" Tatsuki prompted.

"And what it actually was... it was a way to find humans that had not turned to spirits out here in the wasteland. He had the 4th and his Super-mutants scrub the wasteland looking for humans like that. If someone wasn't eaten by the monster here, he was sent to this place," he finished, tapping the Pip-boy.

Both Tatsuki and Rukia looked surprised, and disturbed, by the revelation. However, as neither of them said anything, Yemon continued, speaking in a low voice and punctuating every word.

"_He's. After. My. Vault._"

"He's what?" Tatsuki said.

"I don't know why. Remember Takeda? The guy from the 9th?"

"The... Right, yeah, the guy you just met when you got out."

"Yes. He told me something that really stuck with me. He said that I shouldn't tell anyone I came from my Vault, or someone would connect the dots and try to find it." He paused for a moment, looking at Tatsuki very fixedly. "And there's the Super-mutants."

Tatsuki's gesture of annoyance matched Yemon's gaze. "What about them."

"Well, they're _looking_ for people, aren't they? To take them somewhere."

They stood in silence for a while, nobody saying a word. The enormity of the situation appeared to weight differently on each one of them. Yemon knew exactly what he wanted to do. Tatsuki looked as if she dreaded what Yemon had implied but not said. Rukia looked confused, and unlike the other two, she kept pacing back and forth.

Tatsuki was the one who broke the silence.

"So, you're going after him."

It wasn't a question.

"Obviously."

"You need to find a chip. And he's probably the only one that can give it to you."

"You think I don't know that?"

Tatsuki furrowed her brow at Yemon's response. _What the hell's his problem?_ She thought, but didn't voice her annoyance. "I know you know. But _how _are you going to get it? And it doesn't sound like you want to pay him a social visit."

"I'll figure it out on my way there," he said. He paused awkwardly, and continued in a softer voice. "You don't have to come."

The response came after a surprised, pregnant pause. Before saying anything, Tatsuki lashed out and slapped Yemon.

"What the-" he started to complain.

"Stop doing that goddammit!" Tatsuki shouted. "After everything we've been through! Who the hell do you think I am?"

"And you had to hit me for that?" Yemon retorted hotly.

"We both have permission to hit the other when we act like idiots," she said, pointing an accusatory finger at Yemon. "And you are acting like one!"

Yemon and Tatsuki exchanged angry looks for a few seconds, until Rukia jumped in.

"Are you two finished?" she said.

Tatsuki turned to her, and so did Yemon, the latter turning quickly in surprise, like he had forgotten the shinigami was there.

"Just about," Tatsuki replied. She looked at Rukia, who was doing scribbles on her arms with some sort of finger paint, and her expression turned to surprise. "What are you doing?"

"Sending a message," she said. She looked at Yemon, and gestured with her chin at the Pip-boy. "Show me where Kurotsuchi's base is."

Yemon looked at Rukia with a face that spoke volumes about how little he thought of the shinigami's sanity, but Tatsuki prompted him to obey with a poke on his arm and a gesture of her head.

Once Rukia had the coordinates, she extended both painted arms forward in front of her face, and started muttering a kidō incantation. A glowing square of energy appeared in front of her hands, and branches of magical energy grew from it, reaching into the distance.

"Black and white net. Twenty-two bridges, sixty-six crowns and belts. Footprints, distant thunder, sharp peak, engulfing land, hidden in the night, sea of clouds, blue line. Form a circle and fly though the heavens. Bakudō seventy-seven, Tenteikūra!"

There was a pulse of reiatsu, and after a few seconds, Rukia smiled.

"Contact made. Sentarō, drop whatever you're doing and listen. Set the vault on maximum alert. We've found Kurotsuchi's base, and we're moving as soon as I arrive. ETA one week. Send a recon team to find the base. Maximum discretion, and they are to abandon mission before being discovered. Send them to these coordinates..."

Yemon was completely puzzled by Rukia's actions. He looked at Tatsuki, and all he got was a shrug back from her.

_What the hell is she doing? Who is she talking to?_

Once Rukia had finished giving orders, the kidō disappeared, and she made a sigh of relief. "Phew. It's really hard to control it at this distance." She turned to the other two, looked at their faces, and sighed. "It was just some kidō."

"What..." Yemon started saying, but gave up mid-sentence.

"Just giving some orders to Third Seat Kotsubaki," Rukia said. She stopped talking for a moment and turned even more serious, fixing her eyes on Yemon. "This is bigger than just you and your Vault. Kurotsuchi is an extremely dangerous individual, and by the looks of it, either we stop him or heavens know what he'll do to the people of the wasteland." She paused for a moment to see what effect her words had had. Yemon looked at her with a puzzled frown. "What?"

"What what? Why are _you_ so worried all of the sudden?"

"Wha... You need to ask?" Rukia replied, vaguely gesturing towards the crater.

"You've had a hundred years to deal with this guy! And worst of all, he was a Captain in Soul Society! I've read Urahara's diary, it's not like this guy had a sudden change of heart, is it? He's always been a crazy ass! And now all of the sudden you're in a hurry?"

"Yemon!" Tatsuki shouted, trying to interrupt his tirade. "What the hell? It's not her fault!"

"Then whose fault is it? Huh? Have you forgotten the boneyard? This asshole is turning the wasteland into his freaking playground! If I wasn't out here, if the freaking chip hadn't failed, we'd have heard nothing of this until his freaking monsters found the vault and blew it to bits to get to us!"

"You're not making any s-"

"Goddammit Tatsuki, none of this should have happened!" Yemon finished. His shout had been punctuated with an angry gesture in the distance, and Tatsuki didn't miss that this gesture had been made towards the place where they had buried the little girl who gave him the wilted flower.

"But it fucking did!" Tatsuki retorted. "Are you going to cry like a bitch or are we going to do something about it?"

"He's right." Rukia's soft reply interrupted the rather heated exchange. The shinigami captain had a flat expression, and she talked like she was willing to take all the accusations without a fight or a word of protest.

"What?" Tatsuki replied in surprise. "That's bullshit! He's just-"

"No," Rukia interrupted, she took a step back and sat down, back on the large piece of masonry she had been occupying for hours before. She sighed and paused for a moment to collect her thoughts before speaking. "When I first joined the Gotei 13, I thought Seireitei was a perfect place. I felt unworthy of being there with the others, worse still after..." Her voice trailed off, and she took a moment before speaking again, after a vigorous shake of her head. "I didn't see the true face of Soul Society until I met Ichigo. I assure you, not everything was as pretty as I had imagined."

She looked up and fixed her eyes on Yemon. After a few seconds, she stood up again. This time, despite her short stature, her presence was tall and proud.

"When I donned this Haori I took on the responsibilities of a Captain of the Gotei 13. Even if Soul Society doesn't exist anymore, that hasn't changed. So yes, it is our responsibility, and I will deal with it. It's the only thing I can offer to make amends for the past."

Yemon looked at Rukia with a furrowed brow. He felt suddenly annoyed at himself for his outburst, specially towards someone who was clearly on his side. If nothing else, she seemed to be willing to help him because he was the great-grandson of Ichigo.

He pushed that thought aside with renewed annoyance. She had already corrected him on that.

"Yemon?" Tatsuki called.

"Fine, let's go," he replied, turning around and walking off towards Yachiru.

Dogmeat looked at Yemon go and at Tatsuki stay, going from one to the other with his eyes, as if he couldn't make up his mind.

"Just go with him, ya mutt. We'll be right there."

The dog barked once and took off at a sprint, leaving Tatsuki and Rukia alone.

"Are you okay?" Tatsuki said. "I'm sorry. He's usually not like that, but..."

"It's not a problem," Rukia replied. "He has reason to be angry."

"He has no reason to be angry at you."

Rukia merely shrugged in response.

"The last time I saw him this angry was at the Boneyard," Tatsuki said. "When we found out about the Deathclaws and everything else Kurotsuchi was doing there. He's just worried about the vault."

"As I said, he has every reason to be angry." She glanced at the crater, and continued in a low voice. "And so do I. Let's go."

* * *

><p>Yemon was in a hurry to get back to the Brotherhood's base, something he didn't hide at all. To his annoyance, he was about the only one willing to hurry up. Yachiru had squarely refused to leave any of the children there, specially as none of the wastelanders they could find wanted to take care of them. And now they had a troop of eight children following along, Yachiru at their head and making such a ruckus that he imagined they could be heard from ten miles away.<p>

Rukia had managed to negotiate a compromise with Yachiru. And so, they were on their way to the Hub, to leave the children in the care of Nanao. The fact that the brotherhood base was a military outpost, and that they were going to be in quite some danger if they accompanied them there, had been enough to convince the pink-haired shinigami.

It still meant dragging along a bunch of noisy, disorderly, easily tired children along. Thus, their pace had been glacial, and Yemon just couldn't take it. He walked ahead of the group all day long, and even now, sitting by himself away from the camp, he could hear them back around the fire, laughing, shouting, and squealing as Tatsuki tried to get them to go to sleep.

"It's going to be another long day tomorrow, come on. Yachiru, come on, you too, put her down and let's all go to sleep."

Yemon looked at his pack and his oversized knife, both on the ground next to him, and shook his head.

_What a fucking drag,_ he thought.

_**I'm starting to get sick of this angst of yours. What a wuss.**_

"_Shut up,_" he muttered. Just what he needed, a reminder that he was going crazy by the voices in his head.

_**Just one voice, can't you count?**_

"_I said shut up!_"

_**Just drop these losers and move on, what the hell are you doing?**_

"_I can't save the Vault on my own!_"

_**Always the friggin' Vault. Damn if you aren't a one note wonder. What if I take care of them?**_

Yemon's vision grew dim, as if a darkness was creeping from the corners of his eyes and into view. He felt as if his head would explode, and put his hand on his right eye, pressing hard against the pressure inside.

_**Come on partner, stop being a wuss.**_

"FUCK YOU!" he shouted through clenched teeth.

He heard a rustling behind him, and a moment later the pain and pressure started to recede, together with the cloud in his eyes. He didn't turn to look, he recognized the reiatsu.

"Kurosaki-san?" Rukia called.

"What now?" he muttered.

"Are you okay?"

"Fine," Yemon replied, still not looking at Rukia. He let go of his eye as the Captain walked to his side and sat down. He let the silence linger for a while before speaking. "Just call me Yemon," he said, giving Rukia a sideglance. He rubbed his eyes with his right hand and shook his head.

"If you have a problem, you should let us know before we go into battle. It's going to be hard enough as it is."

"I said I'm fine."

Rukia sighed. "Okay. Just... Don't push yourself."

Yemon turned to Rukia in annoyance. "Dammit, I-"

"Yemon," Rukia interrupted, raising her open hand at Yemon. "You've fought strong enemies before, haven't you?"

"Uh..." Yemon hesitated, unsure of where Rukia was taking the conversation. "I suppose. So?"

"Who was the strongest?"

"Of the ones I fought?" he stopped to thing for a few seconds. "Probably... Kenpachi."

Rukia managed to restrain a smile. She had heard about that from Tatsuki. "And how did the fight go?"

"Got my ass kicked. Why are you asking me all this?"

"Kurotsuchi Mayuri is... _ was_ a Captain of the Gotei 13. He's very strong, and extremely dangerous."

"And a fucking nutjob."

"As you say. But what I am trying to say is, let _us_ deal with him."

"_ Us_ or _you_ personally?"

"If it comes down to that."

Several thoughts clashed in Yemon's mind at the time, from a firm rejection of the idea of staying behind, to the rather confused stream of consciousness she had given Rukia back at the Cathedral. In the end, he swallowed all those words and looked away, saying nothing else.

"It is not only for your sake. You have a responsibility towards the people in your Vault. I intend to help you get back safely."

Yemon nodded and muttered a "thanks", but didn't look at her. Rukia stayed in the same spot for a while, and both of them spent the time gazing at the stars in silence.

"How did someone like Kurotsuchi end up as a Captain of a Division in Soul Society?" Yemon asked after the long silent spell. The noise of the children at the camp had died down, and the whole wasteland felt like it had fallen asleep.

"Well..."

"I mean, Urahara Kisuke put him in that position," Yemon continued, as if he hadn't heard Rukia. "All I ever knew about him was that he had built the Vault. He was a hero! The shinigami had built Vaults for themselves, but only Urahara thought of humans and did what he could with one Vault. And now I find out he put this maniac in charge himself, and all the insanity and everything."

"He was skilled."

"Well yeah, he definitely was, but what's that to do with Kurotsuchi?"

"I meant Kurotsuchi. Very skilled. Brilliant scientist with an incredible analytical mind. As far as qualifications go, only Urahara was better suited than him to lead the Shinigami Research Institute."

Yemon looked at Rukia with undisguised surprise. "What? That's _it_? Any lunatic can be in charge in Soul Society as long as he's good at what he does?"

"I told you, it was far from the perfect place I imagined," Rukia replied, shaking her head. "Soul Society sat at the feet of the Spirit King, the ultimate power and source of order for all the worlds. A power like that attracts conflict, and the leader of the Gotei 13 had to be someone capable of doing anything to preserve order."

"Including putting a psychopath in charge of the research division?"

"And worse. " Rukia made a mirthless chuckle. She leaned back with her arms wide behind her, and looked up to the stars. "In the end, this is all our failure. Our failure to protect the Spirit King, our failure to protect Soul Society, and our failure to protect the World of the Living. It's our duty to restore order, no matter what."

Yemon leaned forward and bent his legs up, crossing his arms on his knees and his chin on his arms. "I'm still not staying behind. I need that chip, and I don't have a lot of time."

"Okay," Rukia replied softly.

She waited for a while. Much like Yemon, she seemed to enjoy the silence and the open sky, there was never the feeling that she wanted to rush things along. She stood up to leave after the moon had made good inroads through the sky, and its pale light blanketed the wasteland. She patted the dirt off her hakama, and looked at Yemon.

"If we didn't take them along, nobody would have taken care of those kids," she said. There was no accusation in her voice, it was a very simple statement of fact.

_I know that_ , Yemon thought.

"Of course, I'm sure you know it. It's not uncommon in the wasteland, but you're not the kind to just stand by, if someone in need of help is right in front of you. Or are you?" she said, smiling. "Good night, Yemon."

She turned to walk off, but Yemon called her back.

"Kuchiki-san," he said.

"Yes?"

They both turned to look at each other. In the pale moonlight, Rukia could see he tried a couple of times to say something, but didn't manage to get the words out. In the end, he gave up and only said a rather terse "good night," two words that carried an entire conversation with them.

Rukia smiled at Yemon and turned to make for the camp.

_Ah, that foolishness runs in the family,_ she thought, and her smile firmed on as she reminisced of memories past.

* * *

><p>"Yemon, are you okay?"<p>

Yemon looked up at Tatsuki, sweat running down his face with complete abandon. He nodded and continued walking, eyes fixed on the distant spot that marked the Brotherhood's base. They walked along the ruined remains of the city that the Vault was built under, of which only a few ruined roads and demolished walls remained. Dogmeat was keeping pace next to him, but none of the Shinigami were in view.

"We can stop you know."

"It's fine," he replied, raising his arm to show the Pip-boy. On the map, the marker with their current position and the marker to the Brotherhood base were almost on top of each other. "We're almost there."

"Have a drink." Tatsuki offered the canteen and, as she expected, Yemon stopped to take a swig at it. "Just finish it, we can refill when we arrive."

"What about you?" Yemon said between sips.

"I'm fine. I can make it that far."

Yemon shook his head before taking another sip, but Tatsuki purposely tipped it up when he started drinking. Caught by surprise, Yemon made a mighty gulp to avoid spilling the last mouthful of water.

"Ach- Dammit," Yemon complained.

"Really, what's the big hurry? Rukia said they'd take a couple of days to prepare." Tatsuki waited, but as Yemon didn't answer, she tried a different approach. "Or do you feel bad she went ahead with Yachiru?"

Yemon shook his head again. He was about to walk out again, but Tatsuki caught him by surprise, jumping on his back and putting his head in a deadlock. With Dogmeat helping by tugging at his sleeve, they soon tumbled down to the ground, in a flurry of kicking legs and profanity. They were both carrying enough load that their loud crash kicked up a considerable cloud of dust.

"Dammit all, Tatsuki!" Yemon complained.

For a response, Tatsuki laughed loudly, and gave Yemon a noogie on the head. "I said we're stopping dammit!"

Dogmeat started barking at the same time, and kept it up until the scuffle died a few seconds later.

"Giving up?" Tatsuki said. She let him go and rolled away before standing up.

Yemon sighed, and pulled himself up to a sitting position. Not that he wasn't dirty before, but with all the sweat he had on him he ended with a sticky layer on his face that he couldn't quite wipe out. Tatsuki offered him a hand, and pulled him up to his feet.

"Tatsuki, seriously..."

"No, seriously yourself kiddo." She gestured past him with her chin, towards a leaning wall of a crumbled building. "Go sit in the shade. We've got a couple of hours to get there, and I don't want to drag your ass for that long."

With a defeated nod, Yemon complied and dragged himself to the shady spot, dropping down on his bum with his back to the broken wall. He closed his eyes, and started breathing deeper and more slowly. He could hear Tatsuki picking up all the gear they had dropped, and putting it down next to him. Dogmeat, in the meantime, laid down by his side and dug with his muzzle under his hand, looking for a pat or a scratch.

"Any better?" Tatsuki said after putting down the last bag, sitting herself next to Yemon.

"Hm-mm," Yemon hummed with a nod.

"Why do you keep trying to give yourself a stroke anyway?" She waited, but as Yemon didn't answer, she verbally prodded him. "Yemon? Hello, this is Earth calling."

That got a chuckle out of him, enough to start talking again. "I don't know," he said, shaking his head.

"Now _I _don't know what _you _don't know," Tatsuki replied.

"What? Oh, well... I don't know. Just that." He quieted down for a while, rubbing his forehead with his open palm. "I just feel like I have to get this done. Quickly."

"I know, I know," Tatsuki said, speaking in a soothing voice. "Your vault's on a timer."

"Maybe that's why."

"Maybe? What else is bothering you?"

Yemon dropped his hands on his lap and sighed. "I don't know. I'm just going crazy."

The voice inside his head took the chance to make itself noticed.

_**Talking about others like they aren't even there. How very rude of you.**_

Yemon gritted his teeth, but said nothing else. He felt a familiar wave of discomfort as if something was trying to crawl out of somewhere inside him, but managed to keep it down. Whatever it was, that feeling frightened the hell out of him.

He must have dozed off, or at least lost track of time, because when Tatsuki shook him by the shoulder, the Sun had made inroads towards the horizon, and the air was feeling much cooler than before.

"Uh, damn," Yemon muttered. He tried to fiddle with the Pip-boy, and in his groggy state it took him several seconds to figure the clock out. "It's late."

"Still plenty of time to get there before it gets dark," Tatsuki replied. She offered Yemon a hand, and pulled him up to his feet. "Feeling better?"

"I guess..." Yemon said. He adjusted his knife and his pack, and took the empty canteen with him.

Tatsuki waited until they were well underway before saying anything. She kept glancing at Yemon, trying to make up her mind, but took the plunge after realizing he was just forging ahead with Spartan stoicism.

"Did you sleep well?"

"Huh? Oh, well, kinda. I just switched off, didn't even think about it."

"I see. What were you dreaming of?"

Yemon turned to Tatsuki with undisguised surprise. "Dreaming?"

"Well..." Tatsuki hesitated, giving Yemon a speculative look. "You were kinda muttering to yourself."

"Really? I... can't say I remember." Yemon shrugged, but Tatsuki's look didn't let him relax. "Did I say something weird?"

"Kind of. You sounded like you were having an argument with someone."

"Huh."

"And that someone was arguing back. Actually, more like mocking you really. You were playing both sides really well."

Tatsuki's words had such an effect on Yemon that he very nearly faceplanted after tripping, but managed to keep his balance after a couple of extra steps.

"So," Tatsuki continued, "you don't remember what you were dreaming of."

"I... I really don't."

"Really."

"No, I'm serious," Yemon replied, shaking his head, but not looking at Tatsuki.

She made a mental sigh and tried a more subtle approach. "So who the hell was it you were not dreaming of?"

_Okay, so I'm not that subtle._

"I'm not sure."

"Yemon..."

"No, I'm serious. I don't know," Yemon insisted. He finally looked up at Tatsuki, and she could swear he looked like he was afraid of something. "I think I'm just going crazy. Like there's a voice in my head."

_**Aw come on, you ain't that dense.**_

Yemon managed to stop himself from wincing, while repeatedly thinking _shut up, shut up!_

"Are you serious?"

"Yes." He turned away, looking at the distant spot they were walking towards. "I need to finish this before I go crazy."

"What? That doesn't make any sense, how-"

"I don't know! I just know, okay?"

"But-"

Tatsuki!" he shouted, looking at her over his shoulder. "Let's just go, okay?"

"I'm trying to help you!" Tatsuki protested.

"You want to help me?" Yemon said, coming to a sudden stop. He started fiddling with his Pip-boy, much to Tatsuki's surprise, and after a few seconds he showed her the map. He was pointing at a marker on it, together with its coordinates. "That's where the Vault is. If I get killed or go crazy before I find the chip, make sure they know."

It was such a change of track that it took Tatsuki a moment to sort through what Yemon was saying. "What the hell? I'm not talking about-"

"Tatsuki! That's the only thing you can do, okay? The only thing anyone can do," he said, and made a swipe on the Pip-boy's screen to remove the marker.

"The only...? Don't you dare go thinking you're going to get killed, you hear me?" Tatsuki said, pointing an accusatory finger at Yemon. "You have to fight, and you have to fucking live."

_**Ooh, she's got guts. I think I like her.**_

It had happened before, and more than once. Yemon felt like a shadow was creeping inside his eye, blurring his vision. He closed it and slapped his hand on top, turning away from Tatsuki and walking away with a muttered and unconvincing "fine, whatever."

"Wha- Yemon!"

"I said fine!" he snapped. His voice came out hoarse, and with a rather different tone than usual. He swallowed hard as he pressed on.

_Don't fucking mess with her,_ Yemon thought.

_**Really? Ya gonna stop me? I look forward to that... partner.**_

* * *

><p>Neither Yemon nor Tatsuki had wondered what could be waiting for them at the Brotherhood base, and they were rather surprised at the bustle of activity they encountered. They were halted by scouts long before they were within sight of the main base, and directed to meet the Captain in her tent above ground.<p>

They weren't quite sure what the shinigami meant by tent until they got to the base itself. It looked like the vault had exploded like a volcano, dislodging its contents all around the entrance. There were tents all over the place, ranks of shinigami in uniform and in power armor, weaponry, gear, and equipment were being distributed all along...

"I can see why Kuchiki-san said they'd need some time to prepare," Yemon said, looking all around and hesitating to set foot inside the fenced area. Ahead of him, Dogmeat put his head past the fence entrance, sniffing the air and seemingly just as hesitant as Yemon was.

"One good thing, no need to go underground!" Tatsuki replied, grinning. "Let's find Rukia."

Before they could walk in, Dogmeat started barking. They stopped on their tracks, but the bark didn't sound like one of danger, moreso as the dog was was wagging his tail vigorously. Yemon had only a split second to realize why he was barking, and brace himself for impact.

***THUNK***

"Kurochi! Blueberry! What took you so long?" Yachiru said, perched on Yemon's back with a big smile on her face.

Without giving Yemon or Tatsuki a chance to reply, she turned to the barking Dogmeat, yelled "doggie!", and took off chasing after him. They look at them go with a bemused smile on their faces.

"Okay, as I was about to say," Yemon said, "were there this many shinigami in the Vault?"

"Uh..." Tatsuki looked at the ranks of shinigami as they walked along. Their numbers seemed considerably, more than a hundred she guessed. "Don't ask me, I didn't stay down there long enough to notice."

It didn't take them long to find the tent they were looking for. Every shinigami that yelled for them to get out of the way pointed them in its direction as he did. They walked in to find Rukia with several shinigami, all standing around a central table with a map spread on top. She acknowledged them with a brief nod, but didn't divert her attention from the shinigami who was speaking at the moment. It took Yemon a split second to realize it was Third Seat Kotsubaki. He was the only one in power armor, and seemingly no longer needed his wheelchair.

They waited patiently until Rukia called the strategy meeting to an end. The strategy itself seemed remarkably simple – it was an extermination job. They were off to destroy Kurotsuchi's creations, and Rukia was to deal with the Captain by herself.

All the grim faces that listened to the Captain's instructions seemed to agree.

"Okay everyone, we move out the day after tomorrow, whether we have gathered everyone or not. Dismissed."

Everyone but Kotsubaki nodded and left the tent in double hurry. The Third Seat waited for everyone to leave before speaking his piece. "Captain, we can more out tomorrow, why-"

"Sentarō," Rukia said, interrupting his speech. "Kurotsuchi is not going anywhere. I understand," she added, looking at him fixedly in the eye. "I truly do. But we should prepare properly."

His face contorted as he tried to suppress his anger, but he finally swallowed his objections and nodded. "Very well Captain," he finished, in a strictly formal voice.

"In the meantime, I have another job for you," Rukia said, and turned to Yemon and Tatsuki. "You two still want to come?"

"Wha- Of course!" Yemon said.

"You bet," Tatsuki added.

"All right." Rukia turned to Kotsubaki, and pointed at Tatsuki with her thumb. "Get her suited up."

"What?" both Tatsuki and Kotsubaki replied in unison.

"Power Armor." Rukia turned to Tatsuki. "If you're going to use Urahara's weapon," she said, pointing at the plasma rifle, "you will be drawing a lot of attention to yourself. You better be prepared for it."

Tatsuki furrowed her brow, not relishing the idea. However, a look from Rukia, and another she gave to Kotsubaki, and the matter was settled without another word. The shinigami gestured for her to follow with his head, and lumbered out of the tent with an uneasy step.

"You can leave your things here," Rukia said, noticing Tatsuki's hesitation. "If you need to do anything else to prepare, you should do it as soon as possible."

"Not really," Tatsuki said, dropping bags and weapons in a corner, "I don't- oh. Yemon, you think you can take a look and see why this thing fires so slowly?"

"Uh... I guess, but no promises."

"That's fine. I'll be back!"

Yemon put his own gear down with Tatsuki's, and took the plasma rifle in his hands. He didn't quite recognize half of the parts he could see, but he had to admit he was curious.

_Just make sure you can put it back together again._

"Yemon," Rukia called, interrupting his examination. "Come, you should take a look."

She beckoned him with a gesture towards the map on the table. There were several marks and lines, some showing where she wanted to move her troops, others where the best places to do battle would be, and a big mark on where Kurotsuchi's base had been discovered. It wasn't far from the coordinates he had guessed. Something else that caught his eye was the half-burned Lieutenant badge sitting in the middle of the map.

"You heard what our plan of attack will be."

"Yes. Where do we fit in?"

"I will keep Tatsuki with me," Rukia said, looking at Yemon to gauge his reaction.

"If you're thinking of protecting her, I appreciate the gesture but she won't like it."

"I know that," Rukia replied, smiling. "But I do believe she will attract a lot of attention, and that weapon from Urahara intrigues me. I wish we had more time to examine it thoroughly."

"Yeah," Yemon replied. He put the rifle on the table and looked at it up and down. "Not sure if I can even begin to figure out how it works. So," he added, looking up at Rukia, "where do I come in?"

"You'll stay out of the battle."

"What?" Yemon said, a mix of outrage and surprise.

"Your mission," Rukia said, cutting his protestations short. "We plan to draw everyone out of that base, Kurotsuchi included. He'll know he has to face me himself. In the meantime, use that opportunity to get in the base, and find whatever it is you need."

He looked at Rukia while his brain tried to sort through the possibilities. Rukia had hit the nail on the head, his first priority, what should have been his only priority, was the chip. Kurotsuchi had the technology, probably had notes on how to build spirit particle filters, that was the bottom line and the reason all the madness had started.

"I see you realize I have a point," Rukia said.

"Yes. Still... I'm not sure it will work, I doubt Kurotsuchi will leave his base unguarded, even if he has to come out personally. Or if I'll have enough time to find it."

"Neither are problems you are unqualified to solve. I never said I expected this to be a walk in the park."

"Right."

"Besides, you will be accompanied by an infiltration specialist."

"Huh? Who?"

Rukia's smile widened. "Yachiru, of course. Who else?"

Several ideas collided in Yemon's head at once. Yachiru was extremely strong, and very good at sneaking around. She was also an extremely hyperactive and unpredictable wildcard. There were about as many chances of her helping him find what he needed as there were of her just blowing the whole place up. And the way Rukia was smiling, he could tell she had considered all this herself, and had come to the same conclusion. It wasn't up to him, or Rukia, or anyone else, because nobody had a say in her actions.

It was up to Yachiru.

_Bloody hell, it's going to be one of those crazy days. Heavens help me._


	28. The Final Push

"If you are pained by external things, it is not they that disturb you, but your own judgement of them. And it is in your power to wipe out that judgement now."

**- Marcus Aurelius, **_Meditations._

* * *

><p>"Are you ready?"<p>

Tatsuki looked at Rukia and nodded. She checked the plasma rifle one last time, making sure it was loaded, and verifying the temperature gauge on the side. It was Yemon's addition, he had hotwired the plasma bolt chamber to let her fire as fast as she wanted, but the downside was that it could overheat easily if she fired too fast.

_Let's hope it doesn't blow in my face._

"Ready when you are," Tatsuki replied.

She cast her gaze to the battlefield, shifting uneasily inside her power armor. The suit responded to her movements almost instantly, amplifying every one of her gestures to move the huge bulk of the metallic frame. The first clash between the Brotherhood's Vanguard and the super-mutants guarding the perimeter of the compound had been brutally brief, but now reinforcements had come out, pouring from the bunker entrance. Going by what the scouts had said, there was an enormous compound carved out inside the mountain, and the cliff face they were about to assault had pretty much all of the entrances.

A small detachment of troops was scouting for secondary entrances, emergency escape routes from the compound. Rukia was sure Kurotsuchi would not let himself get trapped like a rat.

The Shinigami were now in full retreat, all according to plan. The second wave would now descend upon the super-mutants and join in; Rukia and her were to follow behind them. A show of force, and a show to drag the armies away from the base, giving Yemon a chance to sneak in. And a show that was supposed to drag Kurotsuchi Mayuri out of the base.

All those things kept going through Tatsuki's head. She had been going through the plan over and over ever since they left, but now it was showtime, and she couldn't afford to be distracted.

"Stay close," Rukia said.

"Don't worry, with this thing it should be easy," Tatsuki replied, and tapped the chest of her power armor.

Rukia turned to one of the Shinigami and nodded. She then raised her hand, muttered an incantation, and fired up a ball of kidō. It exploded into a flash of blue light far overhead, and on its signal, a thunderous roar rose. The ground trembled under the heavy thumping of power armor, the air filled with explosions of kidō, and regular ordinance. The main force of the Brotherhood was moving out.

* * *

><p>Yemon saw the blue explosion from the opposite side of the battlefield, crouching behind a large outcropping on the cliff wall.<p>

_Now or never_, he thought. It was the critical moment, when the mutant troops would be distracted.

As if he had sensed his tension, Dogmeat started inching forward, ears tucked low and moving in a crouch.

"Dogmeat, stay!" Yemon said in a loud whisper. He tugged at his sleeve distractedly, where the dog had torn the cloth with his teeth when he had tried to leave him behind at the Brotherhood's base. "If you want to come so badly, follow me and don't get ahead."

The mutt looked back at Yemon and laid down with a whine. Super mutants carrying heavy weaponry were now pouring out of the cliffside, together with some strange and hideously disfigured fleshly beasts. They looked like upright walking snakes, with a huge head crowned with pseudopods at the top. The way they moved made it look impossible from the point of view of physics, unless their head was some sort of flotation device.

Next to him, Yachiru looked at the outpouring with a sort of calm looked like she felt bored waiting for it to stop.

"We should move out," Yemon muttered.

"Hm, soon," the shinigami replied.

They waited. Yemon was starting to feel uneasy about the amount of super-mutants that were joining the battle. How many more were there inside the hollowed-out mountain?

_What's Yachiru waiting for? There's a lot of them, but they're all busy with the battle. If they start looking around and see us... Well, she'd probably be fine. But that's not the plan._

Their wait stopped when a wave of reiatsu hit them like a brick wall. Almost immediately, a gigantic pillar of ice appeared in the middle of the battlefield. After a few seconds where the world appeared to stand still, the pillar cracked, and crumbled into a thousand pieces falling to the ground, crushing everything beneath them.

"Let's go Kurochi!" Yachiru said, jumping out of their hiding spot and rushing towards the nearest entrance.

Dogmeat followed Yachiru as soon as she started moving, but stopped after a few meters to look at Yemon, as if he had just remembered his orders.

"Right, let's go boy."

He had soon caught up with Yachiru, and they were both rushing along the wall as quickly and silently as Yemon could manage. He was quite sure Yachiru could get there faster, but had to wait for him.

_Can't use Hyrenkyaku here, or it'd draw a lot of attention when I land._

Yachiru, however... He could only envy her amazing control over her own reiatsu. Huge as it was, she could make it disappear completely, even when using shunpo.

As they closed in, she made a gesture with her hand and jumped up an outcropping above their heads. They were very close to the gate, too close for him to risk doing the same with Hyrenkyaku. Instead, he pushed forward a couple of meters and crouched behind a large rock. It felt too exposed for his liking, but he trusted Yachiru would have his back.

"Dogmeat, here!" he said an a hoarse whisper. Dutifully, the dog followed him and laid down out of sight.

Yemon looked up at Yachiru, and saw she had her eyes closed. It only took him a moment to realize she was trying to feel the flow of reiatsu around them.

_How on earth can she manage that? There must be hundreds, nevermind that huge one from the Captain._

He took a deep breath in and closed his own eyes, trying the same. It was all a big confused mess at first. Slowly, he managed to make out the strongest ones around – Rukia's chiefly among them – and pinpoint them to separate them from the rest.

_**BOOOO!**_

Yemon almost jumped out of his socks, and put his hands on his mouth to stop the cry of surprise from escaping his lips.

_"Son of a bitch," _he muttered.

_**I'm bored now, ya gonna stop all this shitty sneaking around or what?**_

_"Shut up."_

_**I'll take care of them.**_

Yemon's vision started to blur, colour disappearing as everything turned black and white.

_"Yachiru'll kick your ass," _he muttered again, fighting hard to retain control.

That seemed to do the trick, and his vision returned to normal, together with blessed silence inside his head. He looked up at Yachiru, but the shinigami hadn't moved.

_I guess she didn't notice._

It wasn't long before Yachiru moved out again, and like before, she did it with such sudden speed that she took Yemon and Dogmeat by surprise. She pushed forward without even looking left or right, and got in through the enormous gate in a gap between super-mutans coming out.

Yemon gestured for Dogmeat to follow, and rushed out in the same way. It took him longer to make the distance, constantly looking side to side in case he was spotted. It all went without a hitch, until he stepped into the base.

"Move it maggots! We got Shinigami to kill!"

He skidded to a stop, and reached down to grab Dogmeat before he bolted after the voices. The entrance to the compound led to a large room with several corridors coming out of it, and he couldn't tell which ones the voices were coming from. And before he could make up his mind, he was dragged away in the blink of an eye.

"Shh!"

Yachiru hushed him, while putting a hand on his face to stop any protestations. Under her iron grip, Yemon couldn't even squirm an inch. He heard the heavy steps of the troop of super-mutants walking by, and for the first time he realized where he was. Yachiru had ripped one of metal sheets out of a wall, and made a small space between it and the bedrock behind. It was a most _brutal_ way of being sneaky.

"Move, move! Leave the broadcast open and move!"

The voices of the super-mutants soon disappeared. More importantly, so did their reiatsu. It still took several seconds of Yemon struggling before Yachiru let go of him, and as soon as she did so Yemon fell back as his legs failed him, gasping desperately for air.

"F- Yachiru!" he said, a hoarse whisper between his desperate breaths. "What the hell... *cough* what were you thinking!"

"Shhhh, we're being sneaky," Yachiru replied, and pushed him out of their hiding spot. "This way!"

Yachiru beckoned Yemon, and took off through the corridor on the right of the entrance. Yemon had to take a moment to regain his bearings, and followed through with Dogmeat hot on his heels. The corridor went deeper into the mountain, and ended up in a wider room. It was completely empty, and the walls were lined with equipment. Huge screens hung high on the walls, benches loaded with what looked to be radio equipment, or something similar.

It wasn't until Yemon had done the full survey that he realized two things. First, the opposite end of the room had another opening, and the corridor behind was closed by a translucent orange barrier.

The second thing, Yachiru was nowhere to be seen.

"What is this place?" Yemon muttered. He hesitated, but couldn't see anything suspicious inside.

_I guess it wouldn't make sense to have traps in here, would it?_

The answer to that question came when he stepped in. Nothing. Not a noise, not a flash. He headed for the nearest bench, and started examining the gear. His first guess appeared to be right, and it was some sort of communication device. After a bit of fiddling, he had the Pip-boy tuned to the radio frequency of the internal comms.

"This is good," he muttered, putting the Pip-boy to his ear and listening. "They're calling all the troop movements." He looked at Dogmeat as he spoke, and the mutt seemed rather interested in what he had to say. "I think we're winning. There's the Captain... And they keep shouting to go after Tatsuki. I think. The one with that plasma gun."

Dogmeat whined, lowering his ears.

"Don't worry boy, she can take care of herself." He paused to listen, and his eyes opened wide.

"Go back to the comms center and check it out!" a gruff voice barked into the radio. "We have-"

Yemon would never know what he had, because there was an explosion, and the communication was cut short. It didn't matter, he had other things in his mind.

"Shit! There's an alarm!" he said, eyes darting back and forth trying to find its source. Not immediately finding it, he turned to the door to leave, but there was the force field blocking the exit.

_Other side, that's weird. I thought I was-_

His thought was interrupted when he turned to the opposite end exit, and found it blocked too.

"Crap!"

As he got more and more excited, so did Dogmeat, and soon the both of them were rooting through the room. Yemon was trying to find the alarm, Dogmeat was simply sniffing everything. It was the dog who found something – and started growling to warn Yemon.

Through the corner of his eye, he saw a super-mutant come into the corridor at the opposite end.

_Shit! I've got to-_

Before Yemon could get out of sight, something happened. It took him several seconds to process it. A grate on the ceiling popped open, and the super-mutant simply... disappeared. The horrible crunching sound that accompanied the disappearance didn't really register until later.

When Yachiru dropped from the next grate, it all clicked into place.

"Bloody... What... Freaking hell, did she..."

"Kurochi, what are you waiting for? Are you done?"

"Yachiru! You... Nevermind, I'm trapped in here, I think I triggered an alarm!"

"Really?" Yachiru replied, raising her eyebrows in mild surprise. "Okay, let's go then!"

Yemon tapped the barrier, and felt a sting as it kicked his hand back. "Ouch! I can't open this thing! You have to find a way to-"

***SMASH***

Yachiru's gesture had been so casual that it was hard to believe it could have broken through a kidō barrier like that. But break it did, shattering into a million quickly vanishing pieces.

"Don't be silly Kurochi, let's go!"

"Oh... kay..."

Yemon chased after Yachiru down the corridor, only stopping to look up the grate where the super-mutant had disappeared into. It was much too small for the enormous body of the hollowified beast, or at least it would have been if he had had to fit inside comfortably. All he could see were a pair of enormous boots, squashed together in a very unnatural way and filling up the whole gap.

Despite himself, he couldn't contain an expression of disgust. It was a very uncomfortable image, no matter how much he disliked the monsters.

"It's over here," Yachiru called. She was standing by the corner at the end of the corridor, and beckoning Yemon with her hand. The new corridor it connected to had two possible exits, and the one she gestured towards had something Yemon recognized quite easily.

"That's a lift," he muttered. "Think it's guarded?"

The growling of Dogmeat answered his question for him. Yachiru had nodded too, but didn't appear particularly worried.

_It'd take something a lot stronger than those super-mutants to worry her I guess._

As if he had tempted the Universe one time too many, a ground-shaking roar bellowed from the bowels of the mountain, making the ground tremble under their feet and, moments later, hitting them with a wave of thick, asphyxiating reiatsu.

"What the hell is that?!" Yemon said, much too loud for what he had intended, but not loud enough that it wasn't drowned by the rumble shaking the compound. "Is that Kurotsuchi?"

Yachiru tilted her head, making a small pout with her mouth as she thought. "Nuh-huh, I don't think so."

"Then what the hell-"

His question was interrupted by a renewed rumble, a very different one this time. The reiatsu intensified, and Yemon realized that, despite its crushing strength, it was some distance away, and dampened by the walls. Whatever it was, it was ridiculously strong.

He silenced the croaking of the Pip-boy, and put it to his ear to listen. The chatter had intensified, and this time the super-mutants were sounding a lot more upbeat.

"Lieutenant is sending a Behemoth!"

"Coming out, kill shinigami!"

Yemon clenched his fist. _What the hell is that thing?_

* * *

><p>"Reload!"<p>

Tatsuki shouted it as loud as she could, and ran for cover. As before, she didn't have to move too far before a wave of ice came barrelling forward, cutting a frozen swath through the ranks of the super-mutants.

She changed direction, as a rain of explosives was lobbed over the block of ice.

_Hah, too predictable you assholes!_

Once she had cleared enough distance, and taking advantage of the solid cover the ice provided, she stopped to reload her plasma rifle. She fumbled twice trying to take the microfusion cell out of the ammo pouch, and took even longer to replace the spent one.

"Fuck's sake I hate this fucking armor!" she shouted, trying to slide the cartridge in place.

"Weren't you enjoying yourself in it?"

Tatsuki didn't have to turn to recognize Rukia, so she didn't move until she was done reloading her weapon.

"I hate the gloves," Tatsuki said, and whatever she was about to say next was stopped by a coughing fit. "Damn... I'm thirsty..." she added between coughs.

"War is thirsty work," Rukia replied. An explosion caught her ear, but the subsequent shouts from her men calmed her worries.

"Any news?"

"No. Nothing. If Kurotsuchi doesn't come out soon, we may have to finish off his forces and walk in to find him. Perhaps he has escaped already."

"I thought you said going in was a bad idea."

"It is, however..."

A nearby explosion interrupted their conversation, as it was soon followed by a hail of weapons fire.

"Bakudō eighty-one, Splitting Void!"

The barrier appeared in an instant, standing strong between the two of them and the incoming fire. Unlike kidō, which it could block with complete reliability, it could only stop so much standard ordinance. It was plenty for Tatsuki to get into position and start dishing pain back.

The effect was instantaneous, and the fire ceased as the super-mutants ran for cover.

"I think you _are_ enjoying this," Rukia said, looking at Tatsuki.

"These assholes have given me so much grief, I just like to return the favour."

She looked at Rukia and smiled. It wasn't her most sincere smile. The super-mutants had nearly killed her, and she had the scars to prove it. And although she had to admit she liked having such a powerful weapon in her hands, it wasn't really her doing anything; it was Urahara's work. She looked down at the plasma rifle and her smile disappeared.

_A trained chimp could use this and still kick their asses. A lucky shot and it killed a freaking arrancar._

"Tatsuki?"

"I'm fine, let's just-"

A sudden rumble interrupted her. Hot on its heels came a wave of thick, suffocating reiatsu, and soon a dark, disturbingly guttural roar followed. Tatsuki and Rukia looked at each other, and the looks were enough to carry an entire conversation.

In the distance, the unmistakable sound of loud cheering could be heard from the super-mutant front. A new rumble followed, making the ground tremble under their feet. And finally, right in front of their eyes, an enormous side of the mountain opened. In doing so, it cleared the way for the guttural roar to come through loud and clear, much like the crushingly strong reiatsu of whatever lived inside did.

"Not Kurotsuchi?" Tatsuki said, peering into the darkened hole that was the side of the mountain.

"No."

They stood still, waiting to see what it is was coming out of that place, and like them so did most of the battlefield. There was an air of anticipation, very different between the Shinigami front and that of the super-mutants.

Then the first enormous leg came out into the light. Even from the distance they were at, Tatsuki could see it was humongous. The nearest super-mutant barely reached above the knee.

The tense moment broke as the super-mutants started cheering again. Then the rest of the monster came into view. It _was _a super-mutant. Grey skin, massive muscles, and at a quick guess from Tatsuki, about thirty feet tall. It didn't carry any weapons, or any armor, it only had a ragged loincloth, and a cracked, skull-like mask covering its massive face. It was also carrying what appeared to be a ridiculously big-

"What is it wielding?" Rukia said.

"That's a fire hydrant."

"A what?"

Tatsuki's face contorted into a gesture of confusion. It was the most bizarre thing she had ever seen. "Why the hell is it carrying a fire hydrant? At the end of that huge pole, that's a fire hydrant..."

_"Captain! Captain!"_

Tatsuki saw Rukia raise her hand and gesture for her to be quiet, and she looked like she was listening to something. It didn't click at first that she was probably listening to someone using that communication kidō she had seen before.

_"We're under attack, a new force of super-mutants is coming up the rear lines! Captain, we need help!"_

"Damn you Kurotsuchi," Rukia muttered.

The Behemoth was now out and, under a chorus of cheers, was charging towards Rukia and Tatsuki. There was no more weapons fire coming their way, no more rockets or explosives. Looking at the super-mutants moving out, they looked like they considered the fight a done deal.

Rukia raised her white Zanpakutō, and Tatsuki felt a surge in the shinigami's reiatsu. She took several steps back as Rukia stabbed at the ground with the tip of the blade. One, two, three, four times. An icy air started to twist around the Captain, as she raised her sword and pointed it forward at the charging Behemoth.

"Next Dance, Hakuren!" she shouted.

As she did, the attack was released. A wave of pure-white snow and ice poured from her Zanpakutō, crashing square on the chest of the gigantic super-mutant.

For a moment, everything stood still. Then, the block of ice exploded, quite literally, sending shards of ice flying in every direction. With a powerful swing, the Behemoth had freed itself from the ice, and was now again charging at them.

The cries of the shinigami could now be heard more clearly. The battle had resumed, and with the renewed enthusiasm of the super-mutants, nevermind the reinforcements, the Brotherhood of Steel was now on the losing side.

Rukia hesitated, looking at the battle raging in the distance and the enemy in front of them.

"Rukia, go," Tatsuki said.

"What?"

Rukia turned to Tatsuki, and saw that she was grasping her plasma rifle aiming it at the Behemoth. It was just a few steps from its enormous legs away from them.

"I've got this, go help the others."

"But-"

"No buts!" Tatsuki shouted, speaking over a large explosion coming from the left front. "I have this, go!"

One last time, Rukia looked at Tatsuki straight in the eye. In doing so, she quickly gave up arguing. There was no stopping Tatsuki, she _wanted_ that fight.

"Be careful," Rukia said, her parting words before disappearing in a blur of shunpo.

As soon as she did, the Behemoth stopped its charge, and darted his head around left and right, trying to find where the shinigami had gone.

"How fucking rude," Tatsuki muttered, and smiled. She raised the rifle, aimed carefully, and released a bolt. She saw it fly straight for the monster, and hit it square on the chest, right where she had aimed. The Behemoth roared in pain and surprise, as the bolt wormed itself into his flesh and burned a sizeable hole through it.

Then, with a flicker, the plasma dissipated. It hadn't been enough to do serious damage. Tatsuki had suspected it wouldn't be enough, but it sure had gotten its attention.

_And I bet it hurts like a bitch!_

"Now we're talking," Tatsuki said out loud. "All your freak buddies are about to see you die. And I'm the one that's going to kill you, asshole!"

The Behemoth roared, a deafening sound that even made the ground tremble under Tatsuki's feet. As it did, a glowing ball of red energy appeared in front of its mouth.

"Oh no you don't," Tatsuki said. She aimed again, and shot the bolt as quickly as she could. It was a good shot, and it nailed the upcoming cero even before it had a chance to shoot. The resulting explosion was massive enough to throw the Behemoth back off its feet.

It landed with a roar and an enormous crash, kicking up a cloud of dust that completely engulfed everything within twenty yards.

The dust didn't have time to settle before the Behemoth went on the offensive again. Out of the thick cloud came flying a large rock, thrown with such uncanny precision that Tatsuki was forced to run as soon as she saw it take off. It was a bad proposition, as her enemy was now on its enormous feet, and rushing at her again.

_Holy crap that thing's fast!_

Just a moment later, she skidded to a stop. The heavy power armor amplified her movements, making it easy for her to balance back while the soles of the metallic boots dug into the ground. She didn't pay attention to the enormous boulder landing just a few meters from her, she merely aimed her rifle at the Behemoth. She didn't have time to try for a vital spot, specially on a moving target – no matter how big. She pressed the trigger, and watched the bolt crash on the monster's stomach. It blew up this time, not digging as deep as it had before.

She fired again, trying to hit the same spot. It was a close hit, but again it didn't have as much impact. She felt her breathing becoming heavier and more laboured as she fired a third shot. And a fourth. Her hands started trembling, then she realized it was reiatsu. Thick, asphyxiating reiatsu weighting heavily on her. So thick that it was even reducing the effect of the plasma bolts.

And then, the Behemoth swung its weapon, the ridiculously gigantic fire hydrant. Tatsuki saw it start to move, almost in slow motion, and very quickly her head sorted out that a wide swing of that thing would be impossible to dodge. As it did, she aimed the plasma rifle at the giant's hand, and fired bolt after bolt, always aiming for the same spot at the back of the Behemoth's hand.

On the third, the monster shouted in pain, and the swing lost its composure. Tatsuki dove in, running towards the Behemoth, in what seemed like an eternally slow sprint. The gigantic pole was getting closer and closer, and on every step, amplified as it was by the power armor, Tatsuki thought she wouldn't make it.

Finally the end of the pole, fire hydrant and all, crashed on the ground, and in doing so bent the grip of the monster. It was but a tiny fraction of an angle, but it was just the hairsbreadth Tatsuki needed to make it and dive under the attack.

It passed harmlessly right above her head, with a tremendous crash and giving the landscape an enormous scar.

But she had made it. And now she was in the perfect spot, right under the Behemoth's nose while it was too distracted to see her. Without hesitation, she raised the plasma rifle and pressed the trigger.

Nothing. She pressed again, and when it failed a second time, she looked down at the gun. That's when she noticed the fain smell of burning, and the red-hot metal of the chamber. The temperature gauge was firmly stuck past the red end, and Yemon's warnings ominously came to her mind.

_"Don't fire too quick and let it cool down, okay? This'll just let you have to fire a couple of times in a row if you really need to, that's it."_

"Shi-"

The red glow gave way to a sudden white flash, blinding in its intensity, and with it a hissing sound not too dissimilar to that of the plasma bolts as they left the chamber. More by instinct than conscious thought, Tatsuki realized what was about to happen, and threw the plasma rifle as high in the air as she could.

As always, the power armor amplified her movement, and the rifle went flying straight up, glowing brighter until it exploded in a searing white light.

Right in the Behemoth's face.

The beast roared as it fell back, kicking up dust, rocks, and in the process of its flailing about, Tatsuki herself. She didn't know what had hit her, but she found herself soaring through the air. It felt like a timeless moment, but the landing quickly broke the spell. She hit the ground, bounced once, and then finally rolled several meters to a painful stop. The entire world was spinning around her, and she couldn't tell up from down or left from right.

What she could tell was that her chest hurt like crazy, and that, judging by the screams, the Behemoth hadn't fared too well either. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the mound of flesh move under the haze of dust, and grow taller as it stood up.

Tatsuki tried to do the same, but all she got in response to her efforts were whining sounds from the power armor's servos. Her right arm was moving okay, the left was jammed, and the legs weren't doing much good either.

"Crap, crap!"

Her head started to clear, no doubt spurred by the sight of the Behemoth standing up. She could see the explosion had definitely had an effect: half of its face had been blow and burned, so much so that half his skull was showing, and so was a good part of its chest and shoulder.

Yet it was still alive. Screaming in pain, and anger, but still alive. It flailed about to regain its balance, and when it did, it locked eyes with Tatsuki.

A chill ran up her spine. The Behemoth didn't roar this time, only let out a rumbling growl, and opened its mouth wide. A ball of red energy appeared in front of it, growing larger and brighter as the weight of the monster's reiatsu increased on Tatsuki's shoulders.

She pawed desperately at the armor, searching through the collar with the only working arm, until she finally found the emergency lever. With a strong pull, she released the armor, parts flying everywhere propelled by explosive release bolts, and, ignoring the pain she felt all over, she scrambled to her feet and ran for cover just as the Behemoth released its Cero.

The ground exploded. That's what Tatsuki thought. She dove for cover, but got caught in the blast all the same, and was sent flying once more in the air. She didn't gain much altitude, but the blast of wind did send her tumbling along for several meters, until the roar of the Cero died down.

And when it was all done and dusted, she was laying on the floor, covered in bruises, with her clothes showing the scuffs, tears, and cuts that reflected the ordeal she had just been through. The Cero had dug a noticeable trench through the ground, and she was just laying a few meters from its border.

The heavy stomp of the Behemoth moving again spurred her into action. Still under the cover of the cloud of debris the attack had kicked up, she scrambled to her feet and found cover behind a mound of stones.

With her back resting against the cover, she explored her left side with her hand.

_Couple of ribs... Ugh, it hurts._

As she did this, her head was sorting through the possibilities. No power armor. No plasma rifle. She pawed her side, and found her 10mm gun wasn't there. She had left it at the base, it wouldn't fit comfortably inside the armor. She continued patting herself down, and found her brass knuckles on the front pocket of her orange vest.

_Run._

The thought came up uninvited, a quick instinct out of years of survival in the wasteland.

_Run!_

She listened to the sounds of battle, underneath the heavy stomping of the Behemoth. There was a lot of weapons fire, from the super-mutants more likely. She felt Rukia's heavy reiatsu, crisp and cold in a sea of chaotic spiritual energy. Maybe she could defeat the beast.

_Run away!_

Maybe she couldn't. They'd have to run too. Beat a retreat. But there was Yemon as well. He was with Yachiru though. Wouldn't she be able to get him to safety?

_Just run!_

But what about Kurotsuchi Mayuri? Did he have any more of those gigantic super-mutants? And how dangerous was he?

_Don't think about it, run! You have to stay alive!_

Despite the thoughts, Tatsuki found herself slipping her brass knuckles on her hands. She used the mound as a prop to help herself get back on her feet, and took another few seconds to fully regain her footing. Her legs didn't like the condition they were in, but she managed to make them comply and do their job.

The image of Orihime smiling at her came to mind. It always did when she was in danger.

_I'm sorry Orihime, I'm not running today._

She tried to take a deep breath. There was a jolt of pain from her broken ribs, but she needed the air.

_I'm not going to throw my life away. But damn if I'm going to let these super-mutant assholes jerk me around again._

With that final thought, she stepped out of her hiding place, hands clenched into fists holding her brass knuckles. Then the Behemoth saw her.

* * *

><p>"So far so good," Yemon muttered as they came out of the elevator.<p>

He looked at the controls. Second basement floor, out of four. Like Vault 12, Kurotsuchi's base had no stairs, all movement had to come through the elevators. Or, he suspected, through the sealed doors connecting to the complex carved inside the mountain.

_I hope I can find the main computer in the underground part._

It was only a guess, but the underground complex seemed more likely to be the main part of the base. Like the hollowed-out mountain was merely a later add-on.

"Which way?" Yemon whispered.

Yachiru hadn't said a word, and was just standing in place, facing up with her eyes closed. She stayed like that for a long while. Yemon, too, tried to feel the reiatsu of the inhabitants of the underground complex, but it was strangely empty. A few super-mutants were upstairs, mostly in the barracks and getting ready for battle.

There had been no further alarms after the first one. He wondered if they had found the body of the super-mutant stuffed in the ventilation duct.

Rather unexpectedly, Yachiru opened her eyes, and her face brightened up with a huge smile.

"Ne-chan!" she exclaimed, and took off like a dog chasing a squirrel.

"Ne-wait!" Yemon called, trying to give chase.

Yachiru was zipping along on her feet faster than he could chase even if he used Hyrenkyaku. She wasn't even hiding her reiatsu, it was as if she wanted to be found.

_Bloody hell, does she have an older sister? Seriously? Wait, that doesn't make sense, why would she call her Nee-chan? That's-_

His ruminations were interrupted by a tremendous crash, which turned out to be Yachiru. She had been thrown off quite brutally and landed upside down against the wall, where she had dug a hole at least a foot deep. Yemon rushed to the scene, and found a large room at the end of the corridor, full of what appeared to be lab equipment, not too dissimilar to what he had found in Vault 12 all those months ago. He was only vaguely aware of that, as the person standing in the middle of the room was what commanded his attention.

A shinigami. A woman, five and a half feet tall, with black hair pulled back in a long braid, wide eyes, and a round face. She was slender, but well endowed, and her shihakushō looked slightly odd, with puffed sleeves and wearing white gloves.

There was something very odd about her, which put Yemon on the defensive. She was confronting a pair of intruders, yet her expression seemed... Well, _expressionless_.

"It's really you Ne-chan!" Yachiru shouted, crawling back out of the hole and still with the same childish glee in her voice. As far as Yemon could tell, she was completely uninjured. "That's great! I've missed you!"

"You know each other?" Yemon said, keeping his guard up.

"That's Ne-chan!" Yachiru replied.

"I am Kurotsuchi Nemu. Mayuri-sama has sent me to deal with you, he does not like intruders in the lab."

"It's okay!" Yachiru replied, "we're just gonna get what Kurochi needs, then I can play with you!"

"My apologies, I cannot allow you to continue," Nemu said. She started walking towards them, making Yemon take a step back and reach for his knife.

"Don't be like that, Ne-chan, I promise I'll come back to play!"

"Those are Mayuri-sama's orders," Nemu said.

It was the last thing she said. As she finished, she disappeared in a blur of shunpo, and reappeared within striking distance of Yemon. It was so skilfully done that Yemon hadn't been able to completely follow it, and his own defensive movement jumping backwards had been much too short.

But before anything else could happen, a pink blur made its way between the two of them. What followed was an exchange so quick that he could only recount the strikes when he thought about it after the fact. Nemu had tried to punch him, the punch had been deflected by Yachiru, there had been two more exchanges of blows between the two of them with their arms, countering each other until Yachiru sneaked under Nemu's guard with a very unorthodox wide-legged stance and gave her an elbow to the stomach.

And Nemu was thrown back into the same hole Yachiru had dug in the wall.

"Okay then! Kurochi can go find the treasure, I'm gonna play with Nemu!"

"What? Wait!" Yemon called, but it was to no avail. Nemu was already out, and the two of them were going at it. Yachiru was still carrying her Zanpakutō by its cord with one hand, but she didn't seem too worried. She wasn't using it, and she didn't seem to mind if it got in the way.

The battle, however, was shaking the entire room and, Yemon suspected, probably the entire base. Echoing his thoughts, Dogmeat whined softly, looking at Yemon with lowered ears.

"We better hurry boy, if they've found us we may not have a lot of time!" Yemon said, getting a bark from the dog. He headed down the corridor as fast as he could, Dogmeat hot on his heels, and got into the elevator.

"One level down," Yemon said. He was talking to Dogmeat, and the dog looked like he was paying attention, though he didn't give much of an answer. "I didn't see many computers in that lab, but if I can't find anything... Maybe I should go back and check before those two turn the place into rubble."

Yemon reached for the controls of the lift, but never made it to them. Before he could touch anything, the floor of the lift opened under his feet, and down he went, together with the barking Dogmeat.

"Hang on!" Yemon shouted. He had no idea how far he was going to fall, but he hoped he could break the fall with Hyrenkyaku. Dogmeat couldn't. He managed to claw at the wall and get a point of purchase, and pushed himself forward. He managed to grab the dog, and tried then to use Hyrenkyaku to slow the fall.

It was impossible. He tried jumping from side to side, but the walls didn't give him enough to completely stop. In fact, it felt as if the surface was rejecting the flow of spirit particles.

And it was a bloody long fall. Rather suddenly, the shaft turned, and the both of them found themselves sliding down instead of falling.

"Crap, what is this?!" Yemon shouted. He tried to grab the smooth surface, but it was still impossible.

It didn't take long to find out where they were going. The angle became more shallow, and both of them spilled down to a huge chamber, deep underground. As soon as he crashed on the ground, an orange barrier, not unlike that which had trapped him in the comms room, appeared behind him. The ramp had dislodged them into a small cell, on the side of the enormous chamber. Him and Dogmeat.

The dog started barking and growling, and threw himself at the barrier, only to be rejected by it. He yelped in pain, but quickly got on his legs again, settling into a low growl.

"Dogmeat, stop!" Yemon shouted. He stood on his feet, and raised his left hand, readying his bow. He concentrated, shot an arrow, and... Nothing. It exploded into spirit particles, and while the barrier seemed to waver with the impact, it didn't make a dent.

_Something bigger, _he thought concentrating on creating a more powerful arrow.

"Well, what a surprise. A Quincy."

The voice broke Yemon's concentration, and he both let the arrow go and the bow explode. He got kicked back with a cry of pain, falling to his but and, once again, failing to break the barrier.

"Not much of a Quincy, though," the voice continued, speaking in a mocking had a disturbing melodious cadence, a sense of superiority not quite human to it. He talked about Yemon as if he was talking about some interesting insect he had found for his collection.

Finally, the owner of the voice came into view. Dogmeat let out a louder growl now, inching closer and closer to the barrier, but not quite touching it. Yemon couldn't fault the dog, he was having a very similar reaction.

It was a man, about five foot eight or so. He had an extremely strange appearance, with his face completely covered in black and white makeup, a ridiculously large hairdo that almost looked like a silly crown, and was dressed in a white haori not too dissimilar to that of Rukia, only it had a large purple flare around the neck. Yemon noticed that his ears were nowhere to be seen, and had been replaced by a pair of golden metallic cones.

The strange appearance, together with the way he bared his teeth, made for a very disagreeable presence.

"Who the hell are you?"

"Who am I? You invaded an enemy's fortress without even learning about who it is you're attacking?"

Understanding dawned on him. It was obvious, now that he thought about it.

"Kurotsuchi Mayuri."

"Yes, indeed. Very good." Kurotsuchi leaned forward, giving Yemon a curious look. "And who may you be? A Quincy. That's a rarity. And a human too, you would have to be to be able to use Quincy powers. How very curious. Tell me, where did _you _come from?"

Yemon didn't answer, he just kept his eyes fixed on Kurotsuchi. He was feeling a chill running up and down his spine. He didn't like where that monologue was leading.

"I've been running out of humans, you see. Can't make any more mutants without them."

"You..." Yemon growled. "You've been hunting humans, and turning them into those... _things_."

"Marvellous, aren't they?"

"Marvellous? They're monsters!"

"Such a narrow minded view," Kurotsuchi chided him. "You don't even understand. Without them, the world is doomed. Not that I care much, but it would be boring with nothing to do."

"What the hell are you on about?"

Kurotsuchi made a weary sigh. "Souls, turn to hollows, "he explained, gesturing as if he was trying to make a small child understand a simple concept. "Hollows eat each other, and die. That's where this doomed world is headed. Except now, my super-mutants will outlast them all. Even a simpleton like you should realize all this." He raised his face, and kept talking as if he was speaking to himself more than to Yemon. "Should have thought about it before the nukes. Ah well."

"The nukes?" Yemon said, and as he asked, he felt his heartbeat quicken. The way Mayuri had spoken, something told him he was not going to like the answer.

"Why yes, the nukes. Nuclear weapons, isn't that what you humans called them? Fascinating weapons really. Once I found out about them I had to give them a try. Of course, I didn't think humans would be so stupid as to follow my example. And so many of them! Quite entertaining really, and it gave me a chance to study the effects of radiation. Very useful for my super-mutants, you see."

"You! You... You _started_ the nuclear war? And it was _entertaining_?"

"Hm?" Kurotsuchi said, as if Yemon had just woken up out of his own thoughts.

"Why the bleeding hell would you do something like that?! A nuclear freaking war! You have any idea how many people..."

Yemon didn't even finish his question. He called his bow, pulled an arrow back, and concentrated, trying to build it up as quick as he could.

"Oh we can't have that, now can we?" Kurotsuchi said. He raised his right hand, snapped his fingers and, as if by magic, the bow disappeared from Yemon's hands.

It took Yemon a moment to realize what was happening, but the feeling was very familiar. Spirit particles were disappearing, being filtered out of the air.

He felt his heart leap. This is what he needed. True, he was in a hell of a bad situation, but all he had to do was get out.

As he thought of that, he started to become short of breath. The shortness of breath became pain, pain on every breath. And after that, all he could feel was pain. He felt like he was being torn apart, every fibre of his body pulled in a different direction. He screamed in pain, but soon he couldn't even muster a growl.

And much like him, Dogmeat was howling in pain, writhing in agony on the floor.

"Tsch, what a shame. I thought you would be human enough for my experiments. You have gone too far into a soul. Oh well, I don't really need a Quincy. I've studied them enough."

As he spoke, there was a hideous snarling sound. Yemon managed to raise his face enough to look at the entrance of his cell, and saw Dogmeat, charging at the barrier over and over, undeterred as it rejected him again and again. Even through the haze of pain, he could tell he had grown somewhat larger, and his face was partially covered by some thick, white paste.

_A... hollow mask..._

"Dogmeat... ugh..."

Finally, and to his surprise, Dogmeat broke through the barrier. It didn't shatter, or open, it simply looked as if Dogmeat had forced himself through by pure force of will. Kurotsuchi looked surprised by it, and didn't move a muscle when Dogmeat jumped at him, and chomped hard on his left arm.

It all happened incredibly fast. Dogmeat chomped at it, shook his head furiously, and just like that, ripped the shinigami's arm off.

Kurotsuchi still didn't seem to react too much. "How bothersome," he muttered. He reached inside his clothes, pulled something out that Yemon didn't manage to see, and made a gesture like he was pressing a button with his thumb.

And as soon as he did, the arm Dogmeat was holding in his mouth exploded into flames.

"Dogmeat!" Yemon managed to shout through the unbelievable pain he was going through.

He heard the agonizing yelps of Dogmeat as the flames engulfed him. The dog tried to run, but didn't get far. Just a few steps later it fell to the ground, completely silent.

"Stupid mutt," Kurotsuchi said.

Yemon felt a surge of anger inside him. It went beyond anything he had felt before, it rose, and felt like it was consuming every part of his body. His vision started to blur, losing its colour, and almost like the whole world was slowing down.

And then, darkness took him.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>Wow, it's been a while! I wonder if anyone's still reading. If you are, thanks!

So, this chapter: Dogmeat! ;_;

Canonically, the Mariposa Military Base is where Dogmeat died. In-game, it's a likely scenario even if one is very careful during the rest of the game, due to the stupid force fields that do constant damage and cannot be switched off. I've read it's possible to keep Dogmeat alive by locking him in a room on the first floor, but I've never managed.

He's the best sidekick in the history of ever. Show him a little kindness with an iguana-on-a-stick, and he'll be your loyal companion forever, throwing himself with careless abandon at minigun-wielding super-mutants.


	29. From the Depths

"From the ashes a fire shall be woken,

A light from the shadows shall spring;

Renewed shall be blade that was broken,

The crownless again shall be king."

**- J.R.R. Tolkien**, _The Fellowship of the Ring._

* * *

><p>When Yemon came to, he was laying in a bunk bed, one he didn't recognize. There was a feeling of familiarity, however, and it only increased when he started to take a look around the room he was in. Metallic floor, ceiling, and walls. A double-door, vertical sliding doors with a seal in the middle.<p>

_I'm in a Vault?_

It wasn't his Vault. He quickly corrected himself: it wasn't _Vault 14_, but somehow thinking that it wasn't _his_ didn't sit well with him. He stood up and headed for the door, which opened with the hissing noise of well oiled machinery. A corridor, and on either side, double junctions with other corridors. Endless doors on either direction. The size of the Vault was staggering.

"What the hell?" he muttered.

"Ooh, you're finally up, sunshine?"

He recognized the voice, the unreal, echoing voice that had been stuck in his head ever since the fight with the Deathclaws. Except it wasn't in his head. He had heard it loud and clear.

"Where are you?" he demanded.

A peal of cackling laughter was his answer. He listened, and quickly took off to his left, trying to follow the sound of the voice. The number of corridors criss-crossing each other seemed limitless, an unending maze of underground rooms. The place felt _empty, _not so much by the lack of people, but because it felt like nobody had ever lived there.

Soon he started to find stairs, not just rooms. Countless stairs going up and down, and he found himself using them as he tried to find the voice. Somehow, his mind was having trouble reconstructing the three-dimensional structure of the Vault he was exploring; the stairs were connecting floors in what was physical impossible ways.

"Over here partner."

"Show yourself!" Yemon shouted.

There was a short pause, the ground rumbled, and the walls in front of him parted. In doing so, they revealed a large, empty room. It looked like the main entrance's junction back in Vault 14, only this one had at least six different levels where the balconies opened to the common area.

That's when he saw him. A tall, young man, as tall as himself, wearing a completely white Shihakushō with black shitagi underneath. He had white hair, and very pale skin, and no matter how hard he tried he couldn't see any eyes, just deeply black pits.

"Took you long enough, you don't know your own way?"

"What's that supposed to mean? Where the hell am I?"

The young man jumped from the balcony, and fell down the whole six stories without even trying to slow down. Yet he landed on his feet without a problem, with a tremendous thump that echoed for several seconds through the unending grid of corridors.

"Well, if you know who I am, and you stop to think for a second... even an idiot like you can realize what this place is."

Now he was close enough that Yemon could take a better look. To his surprise, he seemed to look an awful lot like himself, and he actually did have eyes. Black orbs with yellow pupils that seemed to hide a massive serving of crazy behind them.

"That's... You are..."

"Hmmm?"

"No way. This... This is my inner world?"

"Bingo! I knew you'd figure it out, partner."

"And who the hell are you?" Yemon said, eyeing the young man intently.

"I'm you! Don't you get it yet? We're both sharing the ride!"

Yemon felt something cold settle inside his stomach. He realized he knew exactly what it all meant, but just didn't want to accept it.

"You're a freaking hollow," Yemon grated.

"Bingo again! You're on a roll!"

"How the hell is this possible? I... I thought..."

"You thought you were turning into a hollow?" He looked at Yemon, and grinned wickedly when he made a face of surprise. "Aw, don't be like that. You think you can keep stuff from me?"

"Who are you?"

"I'm you!" the hollow said. He smiled widely, but after an uncomfortable silence, his smile wavered slightly. "Ain't going to be enough, is it? Hmmm, what about... Nomey?"

"Nom... Very smart," Yemon said. He hesitated for a moment, unsure of what he wanted to ask next. "What the hell happened? I was in that cell, and... I'm not dead, am I?"

Nomey laughed out loud, a crazy and amused laughter. "Ya wanna see?"

Yemon felt his vision waver, and, for a moment, he could see two realities at once. It felt extremely strange, like his body wasn't his own. He was inside the cell, pounding at the orange barrier. On the other side, Kurotsuchi was looking at him. Surprise, curiosity... He was grinning widely, looking at him. The feeling was strange. His hands... he caught a glimpse of them; they weren't human.

Neither was the ungodly shout that came out of his mouth.

"I'm turning into a freaking hollow..." Yemon muttered, and the vision disappeared. "No. No, it's not me."

"Don't worry partner, you can stay here and watch. It's my turn."

"Like hell," Yemon said. He raised his hand, made the familiar gesture to call his bow and-

Nothing.

"What the hell?" Yemon said. He concentrated, trying to feel the flow of spirit particles. But he found nothing, nothing at all.

"Awww, your poor widdle bow not working? That's too bad."

"Get the hell out of my head."

"Oooh, tsk, tsk, tsk, that's not how it works. Didn't you hear me? I'm you!" Nomey waited, but Yemon didn't give any sign he was changing his tune. "Well then, why don't we make it official?"

"Official?" Yemon said, confused.

"Yeah." Nomey grinned, and disappeared in a blur of... It wasn't Hyrenkyaku, or shunpo. But it was a lot like it. Sonido.

Yemon tried to jump away, but like his bow, it did nothing. There were no spirit particles for him to manipulate. Nothing. He tried to dodge, but the hollow was too fast for him. And the punch sent him sprawling all the way to the opposite end of the room.

"Like this," Nomey said.

"Ugh," Yemon grunted in pain, struggling to his feet. If this was really his inner world, he wasn't really _physically _there. Still hurt, a lot.

He saw some movement out of the corner of his eye, so he sped up and scrambled to his feet, barely managing to get out of the way of his enemy's charge. Nomey's kick crashed on the metallic wall behind him, creating an enormous dent and a blastwave that made his whole inner world tremble. It was extremely disorienting, so much so that all he could hope for was to run.

Nomey seemed quite amused by Yemon's reaction. He stopped his attack, giving him a chance to recover his composure. Mostly so that Yemon could hear his mocking taunts.

"So, I guess I'll be taking over," Nomey said, looking rather amused.

"Like hell, you need to beat me first," Yemon replied.

"That's the idea."

Without thinking, Yemon reached back and grabbed his knife. It had been just an instinct, an automatic move after weeks and weeks of carrying the weapon around. But there it was, right where he always had it.

_Wait a minute, I didn't have this in my back a second ago._

He didn't have time to give it a second thought, he pulled it out and readied his stance. Nomey was after him again, and he had to think fast. No Hyrenkyaku to evade, no Quincy powers to fight at a distance, there was only one choice. He waited for the first attack, trying to time it for someone much faster than him.

Fortunately, he had had practice with that.

Nomey made the attack a punch, just as Yemon had expected. He ducked as he countered with a high slash, but it looked like Nomey, too, had expected it. He ducked very low, an extremely unorthodox move. So much so, it almost looked anatomically impossible. Yet nowhere as weird as the kick which followed.

Yemon reacted just in time, turning the blade and embedding it in the ground. It held firm and deflected Nomey's kick.

_Wait a minute, that felt... The knife's lighter than it was._

Nomey didn't seem to like it, and dodged Yemon's subsequent attack by jumping back. He made a second leap, and reached up to the third floor's balcony.

They looked at each other for a few seconds, neither saying a word. Yemon took the chance to clam himself down, taking a deep breath. He emptied himself, trying to get into the right mental state for battle. He had been fighting so much with his bow, he had almost forgotten the most basic thing when it came to sword fighting.

_Be like water. React to what you find in battle, not to what your preconceptions tell you._

And what he was finding was that Nomey looked worried.

"What's the matter? Didn't expect me to fight back?"

"Tsk, I hate when you do that. You get all cocky, and you're just full of shit. I can't stand being trapped in here with a little shit like you!"

_He's strong, how can he be trapped? I have no way to fight back here._

That didn't sound right. It was his inner world. It made no sense.

Nomey jumped down a second time, and rushed Yemon. He was using his sonido at full tilt, and Yemon was having trouble following. He had no idea where the attack would come from, but the way he was moving confused him.

_Why can he do that and I can't?_

The attack finally came from his left, opposite side of his blade. It was fast, too fast to counter with his knife. He dodged back by a hairsbreadth, and grabbed the passing arm with his left hand. Pivoting on his feet, he used his opponent's own impulse against him, and threw him over his head.

He hadn't released the arm yet when he tried to push ahead with Hyrenkyaku. It was an instinctive move, looking to follow up with an attack, and to his surprise, it worked.

As he did, the Quincy symbol on his wrist flared up blue, and Nomey cried in pain. Yemon was so surprised that the kick the hollow countered with caught him completely unprepared, and sent him tumbling back.

He reacted quickly, rolling to his feet to guard for the next attack, but it wasn't coming. Nomey was holding his right wrist, clenched teeth and looking at Yemon with an angry expression on his face.

_What the hell was that?_

"What the hell are you doing?" Nomey said.

"You first. Why can't I use my powers and you can? If this is my inner world..."

Yemon fell quiet, thinking. It was all clicking into place. Nomey didn't seem to like where Yemon's thoughts were going, because he pushed ahead again.

Without hesitation, Yemon raised his left hand, palm open forward, and Nomey stopped dead on his tracks.

"I get it now. In here there's no ambient spirit particles, but there's you."

"A-Are you crazy? You can't use me like that!"

"Why not?" Yemon said.

He concentrated, trying to feel inwards. It felt strange, like he was diving into a dark sphere of nothingness. But there it was. His own inner hollow. The line between the inner world, and the outside world started to blur. He could hear the pounding of his hollowified self on the barrier of his cell, and the mocking voice of Kurotsuchi.

"It's perfect, I can use this. I don't need outside spirit particles," Yemon said.

"I'm part of you!"

"You should have thought about it before you dragged me here." He looked at Nomey, and the cold, calculating gaze made the hollow take a step back where he stood. "So I guess a part of me dies today."

_**NOOOOO!**_

* * *

><p>Kurotsuchi had been looking at Yemon turn into a hollow with a certain degree of curiosity, while injecting himself with a shot of regrowth drug. His arm had grown back in no time.<p>

"This is very interesting, all subjects I've tested that were not fully human merely turned into spirit particles. What an interesting twist."

The hollowified Yemon was pouncing at the barrier with increasing ferocity, shouting and growling in the distorted voice only hollows could produce.

"I guess it may explain why a Quincy would have such noticeable reiatsu." He stopped talking for a moment to look at Yemon more closely. "Although it is distorted from what it was before, perhaps I should analyze it before it disappears..."

He turned to head towards the end of the room, where his large pipe organ shaped computer was. But he hadn't made three steps when the barrier was completely blown off, with a blast of a Quincy arrow that shook the entire complex.

With it came a thick, heavy reiatsu. A reiatsu full of malice, and killing intent.

"What is this?" Kurotsuchi said, turning back.

His answer walked out of the cell, very slowly. Black clothes, not unlike a shinigami's shihakushō, a large knife flung across his back, black hair... And a pure white mask on his face, completely flat except for five protuberances at the edges, like the ends of a five-pronged star.

Kurotsuchi looked at him in shock. It wasn't a hollow, the reiatsu was an ugly mix of human and hollow, yes, but... He hadn't felt anything like it, the only thing he could think of were the arrancar of Aizen's army, or the damn human kid with the orange hair, Kurosaki Ichigo. This one was different. Not as strong, perhaps, but different.

Yemon looked up, and Kurotsuchi found himself taking a step back when the boy started walking. But Yemon didn't go far. He stopped by the charred body of the dog.

He grabbed the top of his shihakushō, and tore it from his body with a single pull. He then fell on one knee by the body, and covered it with the torn clothes.

"Rest easy buddy," Yemon said, putting one hand atop body over the clothes. His voice had an echo of distortion, a voice that had more than one soul behind it. "Thank you. For everything. And don't forget to bite this moron's ass when I send him your way."

After a gentle tap on the body, Yemon stood up and faced Kurotsuchi. He couldn't suppress a growl when looking at him, an animal sound from deep inside his dark side.

"What a great subject you're turning out to be. I had no interest in you before, but you have so many surprises. I think I shall keep you."

Yemon didn't answer. Or move. He stood in the same spot, just eyeing him down.

"Did you lose your ability to speak?" Kurotsuchi said, irritated. "No matter." He grabbed his Zanpakutō, and unsheathed it partially. "Rip, Ashisogi Jizō!"

On his command, his Zanpakutō released. It glowed for a moment, and turned into a deformed trident, three serpentine blades coming out of a hilt in the shape of a face.

"Now, if you would be so kind as to get back in your cell, it'd save me a lot of-"

Kurotsuchi didn't finish the phrase. In the blink of an eye, Yemon had drawn a bow, shot an arrow, and blown one of the three prongs of the Zanpakutō to bits. It had been so fast that the shinigami could only stand there in shocked surprise.

"What the..." Kurotsuchi muttered. He furrowed his brow, and gave Yemon an angry look. "You're not a mere Quincy. Who are you?"

"My name is Kurosaki Yemon. And you killed my dog, you son of a bitch!"

Yemon now started attacking without reserve. He raised his bow, and fired an arrow, so fast that Kurotsuchi could only dodge it by the narrowest margin. He hadn't landed from his shunpo yet when a second one was fired, and it was the same deal with the third. He kept zipping around, trying to stay a step ahead of Yemon's attacks.

"Fast!" he muttered. "But if that's all I can-"

He looked up at Yemon in between shunpo jumps, but to his surprise, he wasn't there. He felt the movement of reiatsu behind, and when he turned, there was yet another arrow going straight towards him.

"Not enough!" he shouted. He dodged again, landing well on his feet after dodging.

He started looking side to side, trying to find where the boy was. He was moving fast now, and he couldn't pinpoint the location of the reiatsu exactly. A moment later the entire facility shook, now from something coming from upstairs.

Kurotsuchi sighed. "I don't have time to waste with this." He raised his weapon again, and it started glowing as his reiatsu surged. "Bankai. Konjiki Ashisogi Jizō!"

As he did, his blade disappeared, and the enormous bankai appeared in the room. It had a giant baby's head, with a long caterpillar-like body, a red cape, and a silver halo around its head. It took so much room that Yemon was forced to get some distance between himself and Kurotsuchi.

It was a chance to catch his breath, which he needed after looking at that enormous monster. And all the arrows. His mask had shrunk a little, the five protuberances having disappeared, as well as some of the edge.

_**Stop this! I'll help you, just stop it!**_

_"Shut up," _Yemon muttered. _"I'm busy."_

_**I can take him!**_

_"And so can I."_

Yemon raised his bow, and concentrated. The edge of his mask glowed red, as another bite disappeared when he increased the power of the arrow.

The bankai – _the monster, that's a goddman monster!_ - didn't seem to move, and it was a large enough target. He tried to hold the arrow to the limit, and then, with a single-minded purpose, released it.

It flew so fast that there was a sonic boom inside the chamber, but as soon as the arrow hit, it dissipated into a shower of spirit particle sparks.

There was no damage on the Zanpakutō at all.

"What the hell?" Yemon said.

"I told you, boy," Kurotsuchi said. "I have already studied the Quincy. I've had time to adjust. True, I never expected it would come handy after the end of the world, but it just goes to show how useful it is to be prepared." He seemed to relish Yemon's confusion, so much so that he decided to continue his monologue. "Yet in all three thousand Quincies I have taken apart, I have never seen one using an inner hollow as a source of power. That definitely warrants study. A post-mortem will be enough."

He gestured with his hand and, as he did, the bankai breathed out a cloud of green mist. It soon started to fill the room.

"Now, why don't you relax?" Kurotsuchi said. "The poison won't take long."

* * *

><p>Tatsuki was still rooted to her spot, waiting for the Behemoth to make a move. Any move. She didn't like being on the defensive, being on the back foot and having to react instead of bringing the fight to her terms, but she had no leverage whatsoever. Her best bet was to use the immense size of the beast to her advantage, to disappear when any of the attacks made a major mess, and strike where he couldn't easily see her.<p>

Her choice of targets was very narrow. If she jumped, she'd be able to reach the knee. Ankles, or perhaps break the feet and force it down. Either way it was going to be a hell of a problem.

_But if I can get to the head, then we're in big gap and a bit of digging, and I bet he won't like it._

The Behemoth himself seemed confused. Tatsuki was not moving, shooting, or doing anything. She was just... there.

He apparently ran out of patience, and decided to simply stomp on Tatsuki. As soon as he raised his foot, Tatsuki moved out at full speed. She had to cover the distance quick, but couldn't make a direct route. Had to go around somehow. In the split second, she made the decision to go to the opposite side, make him try to stomp cross-legged.

Without power armor she was slower, and had to make a much stronger effort to keep up with the beast too. She ran hard, as the foot came down towards her, and to her relief, her idea paid off. The Behemoth had to step down and stop trying to stomp her, or risk falling down.

_And he's off-balance too. Now's my chance!_

With that, Tatsuki changed direction, and rushed straight at the nearest leg. She took her best impulse, jumped, and put everything she had into a single punch. She aimed at the knee.

There was a snap. Then the pain came.

_Shit! My finger!_

She ran off before the Behemoth could react, and much to her disappointment, the Behemoth didn't show any effect.

_Okay, calm down, calm do- shit!_

Another fast change of direction, and she dove for cover right under the Behemoth's swipe. The brutal attack created another blast of rock and dust, which she used to disappear from view. Once she had done so, she opened her right hand and examined it. Index finger was broken, and the handle of the brass knuckles had dug deep in her hand.

_I didn't do this right. Crap._

The Behemoth was now trashing about, looking for the troublesome human.

_Okay, okay. He's still looking for me. I can... _She stopped the train of thought, once she realized where it was going. _Not a chance, I'm not staying hidden. I can keep this asshole entertained at least, while Rukia sorts the others out._

She waited for the Behemoth to be facing another way, and got out of hiding. It was too good a chance to pass, she ran from behind, and punched with her left fist at the same knee. If nothing else, she was stubborn.

"Over here ya big ugly!"

The Behemoth responded quickly, and Tatsuki found it annoying that he had only responded to her voice, not the punch. It made two more sweeps with its enormous hands, not finding Tatsuki, as she stubbornly continued to dodge, and poke at the monster's leg. There was no effect, and she was starting to feel her own bones would break before the Behemoth's. Both her hands were bloodied when it was all said and done.

But soon, the monster seemed to tire of the game. There was an annoying bee running under his feet, and he couldn't get to it. So he took an impulse, bent his legs, and jumped as high as he could.

"Oh shit!" Tatsuki said.

It all looked as if it happened so slowly. The impulse had already made a huge shockwave go through the ground, and the Behemoth was moving high in the air.

Tatsuki's thoughts were scrambling in a confused, disorderly cascade. Run, hide, take cover, or where to go, she couldn't decide. Everything had slowed down.

It was when gravity finally took a hold of the Behemoth that she reacted. She had no time to run, or to hide. It didn't matter anymore. She wasn't moving an inch. Whatever happened. She wasn't moving. She wasn't giving any more room.

The Behemoth started its descent. She was still not moving.

Not an inch.

The landing was as brutal as she had expected. The ground shook, cracked, and the shockwave engulfed everything she could see.

_I'm not going anywhere!_

When the blast reached her, Tatsuki had expected to be thrown off her feet, or pelted with stones. But nothing like that happened. Instead, the air engulfed her and spiralled all around her, wafting like a tornado, with her in the eye of the storm.

"What the..."

It took her a while to realize what was happening. The air around her, the whirlwind, it was not the blast of the Behemoth's landing. There was something circling around her, and as it slowed down, she realized it was six somethings.

Her heart sped up furiously when she saw what it was. They looked like tiny birds of different colours, flying all around her. She reached up to her hairclips, and gasped when she felt that the clips up there, but the six petal flowers were nowhere to be found.

"You guys..." Tatsuki said.

"Tatsuki! Finally!" The red one, a little fairy with an oversized red dress that went over her head, broke formation and stood in front of Tatsuki's face. "We're here to help!"

"How... How's this..." Tatsuki mumbled. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.

"Watch out!"

She didn't know which one of the fairies had shouted the warning. One of the girls. Tatsuki rolled out of the way in time to avoid a hit of the Behemoth's weapon, which once again gave her a chance to disappear out of sight.

"What are you waiting for? Let's do this!" This time, the one talking to her was a boy, dressed in dark ninja-like clothes.

"Wait, he's coming! Tatsuki, let's stop him!" Another fairy said, pink hair, a blue swimsuit, and a pair of translucent yellow goggles.

"One at a time dammit!" Tatsuki shouted. She blinked in surprise when she realized what she had done, and looked up at the Behemoth. He had heard it. "Okay, shield! Which one of you-"

"That's us!" the pink-haired fairy said. "Repeat our names!"

"Okay..." Tatsuki replied, but she didn't add another word. She couldn't remember any of the names. Orihime had used them before, she was sure, but she couldn't remember.

"Hinagiku!" one of the fairies shouted. He was almost bald, with a topknot on his head, a purple jumpsuit, and an eyepatch on his left eye.

"Lily!" the fairy with the purple hair and the yellow glasses said.

"Baigon!" the largest fairy, who looked like a muscular man with a half mask covering his mouth, shouted.

As Tatsuki looked up, she saw the Behemoth opening his mouth, and a glowing ball of red energy appear in front of it.

_Crap, a Cero!_

"Hinagiku, Lily, Baigon!" Tatsuki repeated.

"Santen Kesshun!" the three faeries said.

"Santen Kesshun!" Tatsuki echoed. She didn't wait for the rest, she knew exactly what Orihime would say. "I reject!"

She raised her hands, palms pointing at the incoming attack, and watched as the shield appeared right in front of her eyes. There it was, the shield she had seen so many times. Orihime's powers. Right there. She steeled herself, ready for the impact.

_You can do this Tatsuki! You're not alone!_

She didn't have to wait long. The Cero shot with the high-pitched noise she had learned to dread, and with the immense pressure of overwhelming reiatsu. The crash of the blast on the shield was brutal, and Tatsuki felt as if she had been the one hit. She fell down to her knees, but kept her hands up, using every fibre of her being to maintain the shield.

Around her, everything had been engulfed in the explosive energy of the beast's attack. A relentless pounding of brutal energy, wave after wave that seemed to have no end. The landscape crumbled around her, and every explosion was stopped by the thin barrier Tatsuki was holding out of pure strength of will.

_I... can't..._

Her effort finally broke, and she was engulfed by the explosion of the Cero. She flew up high in the air, tumbled along, and finally landed with a crash a very painful distance away. As it felt, she landed with a crunch too.

"Ow... ow... ow..." she muttered, contorting in pain on the ground.

"Tatsuki! Are you okay?" the fairy with the oversized red dress called, hurrying to her side. "We can get you healed, call-"

"NO!" Tatsuki shouted. "No time!"

"Tatsuki, you're hurt! We can-"

"I know, later!" She struggled to her feet, grunting in pain on every move. "Where is he?"

"You looking for me?" the ninja-looking fairy said. "That's right! It's time to- Hey!"

Tatsuki didn't give him time to finish. He grabbed him, and raised his arm, preparing to throw him as if he was a rock.

"Let me go! You don't have to-"

"START TALKING! WHAT DO I DO?" Tatsuki shouted.

The fairy stopped squirming, petrified by Tatsuki's response. She wasn't taking a no for an answer. And she had more killing intent in her voice than Orihime had mustered in her whole life.

"Hah, now you're talking. Fine. I'm Tsubaki! Repeat after me!"

"Tsubaki!" Tatsuki said. The aftermath of the Cero had cleared, and the Behemot was looking mighty angry at seeing Tatsuki was still alive.

"Koten Zanshun!"

"Koten Tanshun!" Tatsuki repeated. She unwound her pose, and threw Tsubaki with all the strength, all the anger, and all the frustration she could muster. She had run away all her life, and now that she had finally drawn a line in the sand, now she had found out she had never been alone. "I REJECT!"

She didn't quite know how it worked. She didn't know that the power of the Shun Shun Rikka grew as the willpower of the wielder did. Healing, protection, those where things Orihime had had the will to strengthen. When it came to attack, however, her good nature never let her gather any true killing intent.

Tatsuki didn't have that problem. She could hardly remember ever wanting anything more than how much she wanted to kill that thing. Tsubaki didn't just fly out of her hand. For all intents and purposes, a gigantic orange barrier just appeared out of nowhere, thirty feet tall, several hundred meters long. It cut right through the middle of the Behemoth, cut a bloody swath through every super-mutant it found in its path, and sliced a part of the mountain clean, revealing the beehive of corridors and rooms behind.

There was a moment of stillness, the time between the barrier appearing and shattering into a million pieces. A moment when both armies were much too shocked by the turn of events, but none were more than the Behemoth. He looked at the barrier that was going through him completely dumbfounded. He didn't seem to understand what was happening, and didn't seem to understand even as his body dropped to the ground split in half.

After the barrier collapsed, so did Tatsuki. She fell first on her knees, then on her face. Her whole body hurt, and she couldn't move a muscle. Except for the muscles on her face it seemed. She was sporting a huge, satisfied smile. With a supreme effort, she turned to lay on her back, and look at the six little faeries fluttering above her head.

One by one, the faeries returned to her hairclips. The fight was over. She had survived. And looking at the little ones, the image of Orihime came to her mind. Effortless, uninvited, the memory of her looking down on Tatsuki when she came back to life all those years ago. It felt different this time, there was no pain inside her, and the sadness... It was still there, but there was something else. She found herself smiling.

"Thank you Orihime," she said, as tears streamed down her smiling face. "I'm not alone anymore. You've been with me the whole time... Thank you..."

* * *

><p>"Captain, look out!"<p>

Rukia turned around as the voice called for her, but the warning had been unnecessary. She had already felt the super-mutants moving to flank them.

_Useless._

She raised her hand, pointing forward with two fingers, and concentrated. "Hadō seventy-three, Twin Lotus Blue Fire, Crash Down!"

Even without incantation, Rukia's kidō was, arguably, the most powerful in the wasteland. A twin blast of blue energy shot from her fingers, each twisting around the other as they flew towards the super-mutants. The crash, as the incantation called, created a tremendous explosion, sending weapons, debris, and super-mutant body parts flying all over.

Rukia took a deep breath, using the chance to have a small mental break. The battle was still raging in full, more reinforcements had come out, and she kept being distracted by the fight between the Behemoth and Tatsuki. She kept wanting to go back and help, but there were too many places where she was needed.

Like where the new reinforcements that were coming out of the base.

_It's like there's no end to them._

She concentrated, trying to feel past the enormous reiatsu of the masked Behemoth. She felt Kurotsuchi's reiatsu, strong enough she thought he may have used his Bankai.

_He's inside, and he's using his huge bankai?_

What worried her was the other reiatsu deep inside the mountain. It was strong, and dark – a hollow, or worse. Yet she couldn't shake the feel of familiarity, even though she couldn't place it.

_I wouldn't be worried if Yachiru... I just can't feel her at all. It can't be right, she must be fighting too._

"Captain! There's a problem!"

Rukia opened her eyes, and looked at the shinigami. She was one of the younger recruits, found starving in the wasteland. A blonde little thing, with short hair, dark eyes, and a boyish look about her. Rukia couldn't help but smile, even though they were in the middle of battle. She used to eat like a mouse, gathering food and hiding away to eat it.

"Ikuko, isn't it?"

"Y-Yes!" the girl replied, disconcerted by the Captain's reaction. "Captain, there's a problem! They deployed mortars on top of the cliff, the fire is too heavy!"

She followed the girl's arm, and saw a line of super-mutants on top of the cliffside. The artillery fire was coming down hard, and her forces were in retreat.

Rukia closed her eyes and sighed.

"Captain?"

"There's nothing to it," she said, speaking in a low voice. She opened her eyes, looked at Ikuko, and smiled. "Get the troops and stand back Ikuko. Get to a safe distance from me."

"Safe dis...? Bankai!" Ikuko shouted, eyes wide open in surprise, and fear. "You're going to-"

"Ikuko, get to it."

"Y-Yes! I'll ring the alarm!"

Ikuko turned and prepared to run, but she stopped in her tracks. So did Rukia, whose reiatsu was increasing, preparing to call her Bankai.

In fact the entire battlefield looked like it had frozen in time. The sound of artillery had died down, the report of automatic weapons, the explosives, the kidō, the shouts of hand-to-hand combat. All was quiet. All eyes had turned to the orange barrier that had appeared out of nowhere, cutting through everyone and everything it found on its path – which led straight through the super-mutant troops, and deep inside the mountain.

When the barrier shattered, the illusion did too. The battle resumed, but quickly took a turn for the better – from the shinigami's point of view. The super-mutants were confused, the Behemoth was down, and the artillery had been rocked by having a chunk of the mountain literally cut off.

"What was that?" Ikuko yelled. "Captain! What happened?"

She didn't get an answer. Rukia was stuck looking at the Behemoth fall, and how it happened.

"That's... it can't be..." she muttered.

"Captain?"

Ikuko's voice caught Rukia's attention back, and she quickly turned to her to give orders. "Change of plans." She pointed towards the fallen Behemoth. "Get teams three and five around there to flank them, kidō squad at the top, before they can fix their artillery."

"Yes! Um, and... you? Still going to use your Bankai?"

"I am going inside. Now go!"

* * *

><p>The green mist had filled the chamber completely, engulfing Yemon, Kurotsuchi, and his Bankai.<p>

"It should be quite painful, it's one of my best poisons yet," Kurotsuchi said. He spoke in a melodious, slow cadence, as if he was simply enjoying the sound of his own voice.

Out of nowhere, a blue arrow shot through the air. The Jizō twirled around, throwing itself between the arrow and its master. More arrows followed, but none got through.

"Still alive?" Kurotsuchi said. "No matter, it shouldn't be long."

The poison in the room started to get thinner and thinner, and it wafted around like a whirlwind. And every time it converged on a spot, an arrow quickly followed. Soon, the poison was so thin that the combatants became visible.

"What's this?" Kurotsuchi said, looking at Yemon prepare another arrow.

The arrow was once again ineffectual. It took Yemon too long between shots to gain enough of an advantage.

"What's with the shocked expression? I thought you said you had fought Quincies before!" Yemon released the arrow, and moved aside with Hyrenkyaku. As he did, he readied another arrow. The air wafted around him as he forced the spirit particles into the bow. "And you're trying to poison me with spirit particles."

"That's impossible, how can a lowly Quincy...?" His question stopped when a new arrow was stopped mid-air by his Zanpakutō. "But that's all you can do. What do you think, boy? You believe you can outlast me? I have so many ways to bring you down..."

_**He's right, you're getting nowhere. I can take him down**_**.**

_"No thanks," _Yemon muttered._ "I'll be the one to do this!"_

He disappeared in a blur of Hyrenkyaku, and reappeared a moment later right behind Kurotsuchi. He carried his oversized knife in one hand, and on his left, a bow. A much smaller bow than he had been using. He raised the bow, and a quick volley of arrows followed, heading straight for Kurotsuchi.

Kurotsuchi, too, tried to disappear from view, moving with extremely fast shunpo andtrailed by the arrows coming out of Yemon's bow. With a gesture from Kurotsuchi, his Zanpakutō pounced at the Quincy, and was met with the edge of his oversized knife forward. The crash of metal against metal was almost deafening, and Yemon was pushed back by the ferocious attack of the beast. It pounced at him with its numerous blades, and with the grotesque chubby baby arms it had.

With every pounce, with every clash, the entire room trembled. Pieces of masonry had already started to drop here and there.

And Yemon's arrows weren't helping either.

Several more exchanges followed. Every time, he tried to move about with Hyrenkyaku, firing quick arrows with the small bow, and readied himself to counter the Zanpakutō with his own blade. Twice he had hit Kurotsuchi with an arrow, thrice he had gotten the worst of it when trading blows with the Jizō. There were large cracks on the walls of the large room, and pieces of debris, some of them of considerable size, were littering the battlefield.

Yemon didn't stop his relentless assault. On the last one, when preparing to fire at Kurotsuchi, he found himself at the receiving end of a surprise attack.

Kurotsuchi had dragged one of he strange metallic cones out of his ear, and used it as a weapon when Yemon wasn't expecting it. It had turned into a hook, with a long rope attached, all coming out of Kurotsuchi's head.

_What the-_

The attack caught him on his right leg, and sent him tumbling down several meters. Obeying his master's command, the Jizō had then pounded, and forced Yemon to block from a very precarious position. The mouth of the disgusting beast was chomping right above him, and its sickening breath was starting to make Yemon dizzy.

_Shit!_

His knife snapped.

He had pushed it with both his hands, made a cut through the Jizō's face, and the blade had embedded itself between its front teeth. And when it bit down, the knife snapped.

The sudden loss of leverage made Yemon lose his footing, and the Jizō crashed on him. He felt a burst of searing pain in his stomach. When he looked down, he saw that one of the beast's blades had gone right through him.

In his desperation, he lowered his one-handed bow, and started shooting arrow after arrow – at the ground. The impacts broke the floor, blasting upwards both Quincy and Zanpakutō, and after a few seconds, Yemon had freed himself.

He jumped to the opposite side of the room with a single Hyrenkyaku, and landed with one knee on the ground, clutching at his stomatch. He felt the familiar, sticky warmth of blood in his hand.

Kurotsuchi stopped his own attack.

"Well boy, I hope you have learned your place," he said. He walked towards Yemon slowly, his disturbing huge grin on his face. "And you still have some of your mask left, it wouldn't do for you to have lost your hollow completely."

Yemon pawed at his face with his free hand. Most of the mask was gone, there was only a small bit covering part of his left eye left.

He tried to stand up, but the world simply started spinning around him.

_I can't let this bastard..._

He started raising his left hand, as the Pip-boy's croaking increased. It was a slow, hesitant move. Kurotsuchi was not just a few paces away. The edges of the reminder of his mask glowed red, as the mask consumed itself to feed his final arrow.

_I can't let him..._

Kutorsuchi tilted his head as he looked at Yemon's slow-motion efforts. "How amusing," he said. He stood upright, and made a beckoning gesture over his shoulder with his hand. His Zanpakutō raised itself over his head, and after a moment, dove towards Yemon.

_I can't..._

The Zanpakutō stopped. Or rather, Yemon realized, was stopped. Yemon saw it before Kurotsuchi. The familiar figure clad in a coat and a fedora, appearing out of nowhere, and a pair of blue eyes looking at Yemon. He had never seen the eyes so clearly before. He gave the Jizō suck a tremendous kick on the side of its ugly face that it made the entire body slam on the wall. The crash echoed through the entire complex, and was soon followed by a low rumble that made the entire room tremble.

Kurotsuchi turned in surprise, looking at his broken bankai without understanding what had happened.

_**STOP IT!**_

That was the last Yemon heard of the hollow voice inside his head. He put every bit of reiatsu, every spirit particle he could scavenge, into that one, final arrow. When it released, it blasted into a wide cannon of light, engulfing Kurotsuchi in it, and exploding on the ceiling in such a violent way that its blast carved a path through brick, metal, and stone to fly through the opposite side of the mountain and into the open.

When the light subsided, all Yemon could see of Kurotsuchi were his legs. And as the vault collapsed all around him, he only had one final thought.

_I did it..._


	30. I'll Be There

"Do not lose hope — what you seek will be found. Trust ghosts. Trust those that you have helped to help you in their turn. Trust dreams. Trust your heart, and trust your story."

**- Neil Gaiman, **_Fragile Things: short fictions and wonders._

* * *

><p>When Yemon opened his eyes, he didn't recognize his surroundings. It had happened so many times in his travels that he was no longer alarmed by it. He was resting in a bed, a high one, laying down with several pillows propping him up. There was a strong smell of disinfectant in the air, and he soon realized there was a drip attached to his right arm. His clothes were gone as well, all he had was a white robe.<p>

"Ugh... This can't be good," he muttered. He lowered his free arm, wigging his fingers as he called. "Dogmeat, you there boy? Dogmeat?"

He waited for the dog to bark, or to come sniff and lick his hand as he usually did, but it was to no avail. His head was very foggy, so he simply relaxed and waited for all cylinders to start firing. In the meantime, she pulled the needle out of his arm. His eyes fell on the table next to his bed. There was a hat on it. A fedora. He grabbed it and took a closer look. It was familiar.

A small note was caught on the leather band going around it.

* * *

><p><em>You have been saved by the<em>

_Mysterious Stranger!_

(^_^)y

* * *

><p>Yemon shook his head, and tried to put the hat back on the table. He failed, and dropped it on the ground instead. "Uh... Where's that dog?" he muttered. He tried to think how he had gotten himself there. A brief exploration had confirmed he had no wounds. There was no pain anywhere, though he was feeling very drained. Like he had woken up after an extremely long sleep.<p>

Slowly, he started to remember. He had gone with Dogmeat and Yachiru... Where? They got split. He was in a cell.

He sat up in a flash, while his heart leaped inside his chest. It was enough to wake him up.

"Dogmeat! No... That Kur-"

His voice stopped as soon as he tried to say the name out loud. He remembered the fight, down to the very last moment.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

The cry of anguish took mere seconds to summon help. Two shinigami rushed in, and went straight for his bed.

"Kurosaki-san! Stop! You're safe!" the taller shinigami said. A black-haired, square-jawed, bearded man.

They tried to restrain him, but there was no need. Yemon didn't want to struggle, or do anything. He had his hands on his head, stuck with his mouth open even after he had run out of scream.

"Kurosaki-san? Can you hear me?"

"What have I done?" he said, in such a soft voice neither of the shinigami understood him.

The shinigami looked at each other, and tried again.

"Kurosaki-san?" the bearded one said. When he got no answer, he look at the other one and gestured away with his head. "Go get Arisawa-san."

It wasn't long before they returned. Tatsuki made the trip in record time, and by the looks of it she had forgotten about her claustrophobia completely.

"Yemon! You're awake!" she shouted as soon as she entered the room.

"Wait! Arisawa-san! I told you- wait!" the voice of the shinigami came from outside the room, quite some distance away. Tatsuki ignored him.

"Yemon! Are you up? At last! What took you so long? It's been almost two weeks! I healed you right up, and you wouldn't wake anyway!" She stopped talking, and looked at him in the eye. "Hey, are you awake or what? Talk to me!" Tatsuki was now by Yemon's bed, and shaking him rather vigorously too.

"I screwed up..." Yemon said.

"What? Louder, come on, what's wrong? Talk to me!"

Tatsuki's insistence coaxed Yemon into actually speaking. He looked at her with a distraught expression, shaking is head. "I screwed up Tatsuki. I didn't find the chip. I killed him. I should have tried... I should have... I failed. Everyone-"

"Stop, stop! Jeez, are you listening to yourself?" Tatsuki said. "Get up."

Yemon looked at her as if he hadn't understood what the sounds coming out of her mouth were.

"I said get up! Come on!" Tatsuki grabbed Yemon by the collar and pushed him up, dragging him out of bed. He nearly fell down, so Tatsuki pushed him back to bed.

"Woah, what are you doing?" the bearded shinigami said, breaking his silent contemplative act and rushing to their aid.

"Help me get him up, will ya?" Tatsuki said.

"He's-"

"He's fine. And he's got to see this," Tatsuki interrupted. She gestured for the shinigami to help her, and between the two of them they got Yemon up.

"Can you stand? There you go." She put his right arm over her shoulders, and helped him stay on his feet. It wasn't the best position, as Yemon was noticeably taller than her, but it would have to do.

"Why... What are you doing?" Yemon muttered.

"Just shut up and come with me."

It didn't take her long to get Yemon to the lift, and sent it straight to the top floor. She kept glancing at him, and smirking as she did, but she got nothing back.

"Just wait," she said.

By the time they arrived to the top floor Yemon didn't need any more propping up, but still didn't seem to much care about whatever Tatsuki was saying. She dragged him out of the lift, and ignored anyone and everyone who tried to stop them. Until they reached one of the large rooms at the northwest corner of the Vault. The top of the room was completely open to the outside, and there were, quite literally, dozens of piles of salvage stacked up to the ceiling.

And more was coming down the open roof.

There was a chorus of greetings when they entered, but Tatsuki dragged Yemon straight to the central bench, where several shinigami were working on what appeared to be the parts in best condition. The parts were being sorted, cleaned, tested, and two shinigami had large sheets of paper in front of them, where they were working on writing blueprints.

"Rukia! Ise-san!" Tatsuki called.

The two shinigami, Captain of the 13th and Lieutenant of the 8th, were standing by the bench, overseeing the whole process.

"Yemon!" Rukia called.

"Kurosaki-san, Arisawa-san," Nanao said.

Yemon was looking around in complete confusion, and didn't seem to even hear the shinigami calling him.

"He's feeling a bit off," Tatsuki said, "but he needs to see this. Hey Yemon." She shook him to grab his attention, and took one of the blueprints that were on the bench. "Take a look at this will you?"

"What?" He looked at the large sheet of blue paper, then back at Tatsuki. "What's this?"

"Dunno, you tell me."

Yemon looked around, and realized it wasn't just Tatsuki. Rukia was looking at him with a mischievous grin on her face, and Nanao, of all people, was smiling too.

He turned his attention to the sheet of paper. It was a blueprint all right.

_Filtering system. What?_

There were diagrams for the very complicated machinery, with pipes, a large deposit, a renewable filtering system, and several equations on efficiency, and notes on maintenance.

Revelation hit him like a sack of bricks. His hands started to tremble, and he looked at Tatsuki with a shocked expression, mouth hanging open but not saying a word. Not saying a word, Tatsuki gestured to the side, pointing at what looked like a large piece of machinery besides the bench. It looked exactly like the design on the blueprints.

Without warning, Yemon's legs buckled under him, and he fell on his knees.

"Woah!" Tatsuki said, reaching out to steady him. "Are you okay?"

"H... How..."

"Scavenging of course," Rukia said, answering the unfinished question. She pointed at the open roof above their heads. "We've been getting salvage from the Vault since the battle ended. We found out Kurotsuchi Mayuri had abandoned the chip design," she continued, now getting Yemon's attention. She smiled when he saw he was on the verge of tears. "So I called Nanao for a bit of help, scavenging and rebuilding you one of these. Should be good for hundreds of years."

Yemon wiped his face with the back of his hand, not letting go of the blueprints. He looked at them again, and gave the impression he wasn't ever letting go of the sheet of paper.

"T... Thank you..." Yemon said. It was all he managed to get out in his broken voice.

"Kurochi!"

This time, Yachiru caught him completely unprepared. She jumped on his back, Yemon didn't react, and he ended up faceplanting on the floor.

"Yachiru!" Tatsuki shouted. "He just-"

She was interrupted by Yemon's laughter. Like a smack to the face, it seemed to be exactly what he needed; it was a merry, unrestrained laughter.

"Hello Yachiru," Yemon said when his laughter died down. He pushed himself up, but stayed on his knees. Yachiru wasn't letting go of him. He wiped his face again, last time he needed to do it.

"Look what Ne-chan gave me!" she said. She showed Yemon her left hand, and the strange piece of black cloth wrapped around it.

"Really? What's this?" Yemon said. He reached up to grab the cloth and-

"Wait!"

Tatsuki's warning came too late. Yemon grabbed Yachiru's wrist, and promptly faceplanted again. It took a few seconds for him to get his bearings once more, after Tatsuki pulled Yachiru off him and gave him a rather vigorous slap.

"W-What the hell happened?"

"It's a reiatsu-sucker," Tatsuki said. She offered Yemon a hand, and helped him to his feet. He had to hold firm, as Yemon needed more steadying after that little surprise.

"Now I can play longer!" Yachiru added. "It's great!"

"Jeez, where did you get that from?" Yemon said.

"Ne-chan gave it to me!"

"Ne..." Yemon hesitated, trying to dig in his memories. "Wasn't that..."

"Kurotsuchi Nemu," Nanao said. She had the kind of voice that commanded attention, and so it did with everyone within earshot. "Without her help, we wouldn't have been able to recover all this."

He didn't answer at first. That was a new piece of information, and he was stuck trying to process it. "Kurotsuchi?"

"Yes. She is the Lieutenant of the 12th Division," Nanao replied, and gave Yemon a significant look. "Kurotsuchi Mayuri's daughter."

Yemon gulped, and looked around. He couldn't see her anywhere. "Where is she?"

"Don't worry, she's not your enemy anymore," Nanao replied.

"No, no, that's not it. Where is she?"

Nanao raised an eyebrow, and looked at Rukia. The Captain made a small smile, and nodded back.

"She is outside," Nanao said.

"Thanks," Yemon replied. He turned to leave, and gestured for Tatsuki to stop when she tried to help him. "I'm okay."

Yemon made his way to the lift and, as he entered, he put his hand on the door for a moment to keep it open.

_Oh, right. Dogmeat isn't..._

He stepped back and let the door close. It suddenly felt rather lonely inside that lift.

It didn't take him long to find Nemu. She was standing alone, a fair distance away from the camp, looking at the horizon. She wasn't moving a single muscle, just standing there like a statue.

He hesitated. He realized he had walked out of the base just wearing his white robe, but it was too late now to just walk back.

"K... Nemu-san?"

She didn't answer, or move. She didn't even look at Yemon. He walked on, and stood besides her. Her face was bruised, and had several stitches on a cut through her left eyebrow.

_Wait, so Yachiru was really fighting her? And she still helped us?_

"Ise-san told me that you helped them. Us. With the spirit particle filter I mean," Yemon said. Once again, there was no response from her. "Thank you. Truly, thank you. If there's anything I can do to repay you, just say the word."

Nemu, for the first time, acknowledged him. It was just a nod, without turning to him at all.

Yemon was about to speak, but stopped before making any sound. _How can I justify killing her father? Will she care? _He thought about it for a long while, both of them staring silently at the horizon. The Sun was starting to set, something Yemon never got tired of watching.

"I'm sorry for your loss, Nemu-san," he finally said. There was nothing else he could add, not really. He was sorry to see someone who had helped him so much suffer, but he wasn't sorry for killing Kurotsuchi, and couldn't think about trying to explain to her why it had to happen.

"Thank you," Nemu replied. She spoke in a flat, monotone voice.

Yemon didn't wait around. He just turned and left, leaving the shinigami alone again. Tatsuki was waiting for him at the entrance of the base, with a relaxed smile on her face. It was the first time Yemon had a good look at her since she had dragged him out of bed. She looked genuinely happy, for the first time ever.

"All done?" she said.

"No, but I can't think of anything else to say."

"Yeah." Tatsuki looked past Yemon at Nemu. "She wouldn't let me heal her either."

"Huh? She's got stitches and all, what do you mean?"

For an answer, Tatsuki's smile widened, and she held the silence for a moment. "Ayame! Shun'ō!" she called, and immediately, with a flash, the two little faeries flew out of her hairclips.

Yemon took a step back in surprise, looking at the two bird-like things. As far as he could tell, they had come out of freaking nowhere. "What the heck? What's that?"

Tatsuki's smile widened. She raised her hand to her hairclips, and the faeries flew straight back in. With a mysterious wink, and not a single word, she headed back to the Vault's entrance.

"Well," she said, when Yemon didn't follow, "what are you waiting for? We've got to pack if we're leaving for your Vault." She stopped for a moment, giving Yemon a long, silent look. Her smile softened, and she tilted her head to the side slightly. "It's time for you to go home."


	31. The Door

Of our elaborate plans, the end  
>Of everything that stands, the end<br>No safety or surprise, the end  
>I'll never look into your eyes...again<p>

**- The Doors, **_The End._

* * *

><p>Life in Vault 14 had changed markedly in the five months since Yemon had left. There was no way to hide his departure from the inhabitants, so Karin had had to explain what the problem was.<p>

Ever since, daily readings of the air quality had become the norm. And as time passed, more and more uncertainty crept in the atmosphere. Arguments became a daily occurrence, and tensions ran sky-high. Some wanted to send someone else to find a chip. Others sided with the overseer in saying that only Yemon could bring it back.

But as time progressed, desperation started to set in. Discussions on the state of affairs with the overseer were now going almost non-stop. Karin would be seatedat the high Overseer command centre, and just let the Vault inhabitants come through as they pleased.

She had quite a crowd that day. A dozen people.

_Why do we have to fight like this?_

"If we are going to open the Vault anyway, we should send someone out!"

"Fuuto," Karin replied, speaking in a tired voice. "And who would you send? Will you volunteer?"

"I'll go!"

Her again. Karin looked at Maya with a sad smile on her face. It wasn't the first time she had volunteered.

"Thank you Maya-chan, but it will not be necessary. Yemon will be back."

"How many times have you said that?" another angry vault dweller yelled.

"As many times as necessary for everyone to understand."

The argument continued back and forth, but this time she didn't have to say anything. Others who agreed with her, chiefly among them her own grandson, Taizo, kept the argument going.

It took nearly an hour for the crowd to finally disperse. Taizo stayed behind, and so did Maya.

"Matron," Maya said, once everyone was out of earshot. "Why won't you let me go? I can help Yemon! I'll find him! I-"

"Maya-chan," Karin said, stopping her tirade. "He will come back."

"I want to go with him!"

"How many times must we have this discussion?" Karin replied. She reached out, pressed the release control button, and the Overseer command post started lowering itself. Once she was at ground level, she got her cane and walked out, until she was close enough to Maya to put a hand on her arm. "He will come back."

Maya bit her lip and looked down, not responding.

"You seem quiet today," Karin said, turning to Taizo. He had been very vocal during the argument, but now he was completely silent. She put her hand on his shoulder, and gave him a gentle squeeze.

He was fidgeting with the right armrest of his wheelchair, and wore a hard look on his face. "It's been five months. We don't have a lot of time left."

Karin sighed. "You cannot go outside to help him."

"I can go outside to look. I'm probably the only one who can go outside."

"Don't torture yourself. Just wait." Karin patted her grandson's shoulder. He sighed, looked up at her, and gave her a nod back.

As he was preparing to leave, Maya came from behind and pushed at the wheelchair, taking him away.

"I can handle it," Taizo said.

"No, I... I want to help."

Taizo shook his head. "Grandma's right, there's nothing we can do."

"I can-"

"No," Taizo interrupted her. "You can't. Noone in the Vault can, except me." He banged his fist on the wheelchair's armrest. "And look at me!"

They moved out in silence, heading for the lift. And while they waited for it to come, it happened. The entire Vault started trembling, and a rumbling, grinding sound soon could be heard in the distance.

"The Vault's door!" Taizo said.

"Yemon!" Maya shouted.

She didn't wait for the lift to come, she left Taizo behind, and headed straight for the stairs. Climbing them two, and three steps at a time, she was the first one at the gate – other than the two men guarding it. It was still closed, but the rumble was unmistakeably coming from behind it.

_It's the door outside!_

There was a pause. A very long pause. Other Vault dwellers started to pour in, until the place was so packed that the crowd was spilling into the stairs. The rumble resumed. The outer door was now closing, and after an interminably long time, the mechanism of the internal door started moving. Maya was at the front of the crowd, pressing hard and trying to get past the guards, who were keeping everyone away.

"Stop pushing! We don't know who it is!" one of the guards shouted.

"It's Kurosaki-kun!" Maya shouted back. Finally, and with a twist, she managed to sneak under the human barrier and head for the door. It was now turning, and there was enough of a gap for her to sneak in. "Kurosaki-kun!" she called again. After a moment, her voice came through. "There's noone here!"

The door was nearly completely open now, and the contents were there for all to see. The back half of an old car, loaded to the gills. There was a large piece of machinery, and several crude boxes filled with parts.

And next to it, Maya was looking at the pile with a confused expression.

"What the hell's all this? Where's Kurosaki-kun?"

The excitement of the crowd increased. The guards went to check the contents, as well as other vault dwellers. Taizo was among them, and as the chief engineer he quickly found himself at the front of the exploration.

"Oi, Kurosaki-san!" one of the guards called. He raised his hand, showing him a folded piece of paper.

"What's this?" Taizo said. He grabbed the paper, and recognized it immediately. "This is Yemon's handwriting."

He hadn't even finished speaking when Maya pounced at him, looking at the paper over his shoulder. "What? What is it?"

"Look."

There it was, written right in front.

_To: Kurosaki Karin._

"Open it!" Maya demanded.

"It's not for us," Taizo said. He put it on his lap, and was about to steer himself out when Maya snatched the card and rushed away. "Maya!"

She ignored him. She opened the letter, and started pouring over the contents before they took it off her hands. The paper itself seemed ridiculously old and fragile.

_Dear Gran-Gran,_

_This is it. I couldn't find a spirit particle filter chip, but I got this. It's a full spirit particle filtering system. It's compatible with our Vault, and will last hundreds and hundreds of years. There's a lot of spares too, and full schematics. Just give it to dad, I'm sure he'll have no problem fitting it in. I've also added a few guns and ammo. You may never need them, but just in case._

_I've had to leave this letter because I can no longer go into the Vault. I have been outside for too long. If I tried, I'd be torn apart into spirit particles._

_You knew this would happen, didn't you? Or that it could, at least.__It's okay. I told you I would do anything for the Vault. I've met some nice people out here. Do you remember Arisawa Tatsuki? We've been travelling together, you can thank her for the spirit particle filtering too, she has helped me a lot._

_I've been thinking about this, how I was the only one who could go out, and how you gave me the Quincy chain. It all makes sense now. My great-grandfather was a Quincy too, wasn't he? And he didn't make it to the Vault._

_But it's okay. Although I'm going to miss you all. For the first few weeks all I could think of was going back, but after a while, I started seeing the good side of the outside world. I'm going to be okay. I'm in good company. And I'll keep an eye on the Vault from out here too._

_Please, tell mom and dad that I love them. And Maya. Tell her that I'm sorry too._

_Love you all,_

_Yemon._

"What..." Maya muttered. She read and re-read the brief letter, and when she looked up, she saw that Karin was already there, looking at her, waiting patiently for her to finish. "He's not coming back!" she shouted.

"I know," Karin replied calmly.

"You knew! You sent him out there, and you knew he couldn't come back!"

"I knew it could happen."

"How could yo do this? He's your own family!" She dropped the letter, and ran to the external door. She pounced at it with her fists, shouting for Yemon. "Kurosaki-kun! Kurosaki-kun!"

Karin closed her eyes and sighed. The memories of her arrival at the Vault were still fresh, even after so many decades, and now they were all flooding back. She walked in years after the Vault had first closed. If she hadn't, if she had gone in sooner, then maybe her dear Uryū would have survived.

He saved her from the battle. Because Ichigo had asked him to. And he repaid him by refusing to go into the Vault, waiting for too long for Ichigo to come back.

Waiting until it was too late for him.

She reached for her chest, touching one of the two scars she carried since that day. Where Uryū had shot her before disappearing into a cloud of spirit particles. The Soul Chain, and the Soul Sleep. Broke the two of them, so that she could live in the Vault.

Saved her life. And the life of their unborn son.

* * *

><p>Yemon was outside the Vault, back against the door, arms crossed. Waiting. He was surrounded by the still warm, dead bodies of a dozen mutated rats, but he didn't give them a second glance. After all he had been through, those were no longer even close to a threat.<p>

He couldn't hear a thing that was going on inside. The door was absolutely gigantic, and didn't let anything through. No air, no spirit particles, and no sound. He didn't know how long he waited, long enough he hoped. He wasn't sure if they had taken the parts and started fitting them, but he imagined they probably had. No sign of them being in trouble.

The door had been closed when he got there. He had arrived on time. They'd have opened the Vault if they had had no other choice; Karin wouldn't have kept it closed and let people die inside, without giving them a chance. However slim.

_What wonderful thoughts._

With a sigh, he pushed himself up, and walked out of the cave, taking his time with each step. He was now leaving forever. There was no place for him in that Vault at all.

"All done?"

She looked up at Tatsuki, who was giving him a smile. As he expected, Yachiru jumped on his back as soon as he was out, giggling all the way up to him.

"Yes." He cast a gaze around, and saw that the shinigami were a good distance away already, taking the brahmin that had carried the load with them. It would be several days before they reached the Brotherhood.

Rukia had vouched for them. They'd die before revealing the secret location of Vault 14.

"Where are we going?" Yachiru said, resting her chin on Yemon's shoulder.

"We can go anywhere we want," Yemon replied. He closed his eyes, facing up and taking a deep breath. An idea came to mind. "Actually, I think I know where we can go." He looked at Yachiru, then at Tatsuki, and grinned. "Have you ever heard of the White Tusk?"


	32. Epilogue

**Vault 14** recovered from its ordeal, and for many, many years, continued to offer a hideout for mankind to survive. The stress of the chip failure, together with the loss of her great grandson, proved too much for the aged Overseer and, a short two months later, Kurosaki Karin passed away. Kurosaki Taizo was to be the last of the Kurosaki line inside the Vault.

**Shady Sands** expanded under the leadership of Tandi. She took after Aradesh stepped aside, a decade after the arrival of Yemon. Inspired by the vault dweller, his determination, and his burning desire to help others, she led the small settlement into a period of trade, openness, and prosperity. It became know as New Rukongai, and became the most important city of souls, where even shinigami would live and trade.

**Junktown **prospered without the presence of Ōmaeda and his gang of thugs. Killian's Darkwaters company became the foremost scavenging and recovering group in the wasteland, and worked closely with shinigami and the Brotherhood of Steel to recover everything that was to be found of the old world. Motorized vehicles made a comeback, and decades later Junktown garages became the center of the budding automotive industry.

**The Raiders **soon ceased their activity, as word of a vengeful spirit preying on stray shinigami started to spread. It was said to take three forms, one of a shinigami carrying a blue light, another of a small beast with orange skin, and the last one of a pink and black deadly demon. Those who knew the truth refused to speak, too fearful to even remember their ordeals. The 11th Division soon lost its reputation for evil, and became merely a shorthand for lunatics. Crazy people were said to be elevened.

**The Necropolis **continued to thrive, and to collect the deformed, burned out ghouls of the wasteland. Relationships between the humans and the ghouls never did improve, but there was a grudging truce between them. As long as caps flowed, trade continued; that was all that could happen. Lead was the usual answer whenever one side stepped on the other's toes.

**The Boneyard **was abandoned, once the truth of Kurotsuchi's experiments became known. History became legend, stories of the monsters became what parents told their children to keep them in line. _Behave, or the Deathclaw will get you_ became a common phrase. Yet sightings of the Deathclaws seemed to continue plaguing the wasteland. And every so often, someone would be daring enough to explore the ruins of the Boneyard, never to be heard of again.

**The Hub **became the real center of the wasteland, not just for trading, but for the shinigami. Led at first by Ise Nanao, the 8th division grew, maintaining the biggest collection of records from the time before the Cataclysm, the center of all trading in the Wasteland, and the home of what was, for many decades, the only orphanage in the wasteland – where the pink-haired shinigami Kusajishi Yachiru collected all the strays who wandered about. And the strays included a litter of grey mutts, which had been born somewhere in the Hub.

Little by little, the responsibilities of guiding the 8th Division begun to spread, splitting the division out in numerous branches, as Nanao gave up more and more of the weight she carried on her shoulders. Decades after these events, it was common to see her merely walking around the streets of the city, pushing the wheelchair of her silent companion.

**The White Tusk **disappeared seemingly overnight, and soon slavery became but a distant memory for many. Those who were freed from the slavers the day the White Tusk disappeared spoke of a terrifying battle, where gunfire and explosions were dwarfed by the terrifying power of the two mistresses of the slavers, and the ones who killed them.

**The Children of the Cathedral **spread through the land. With their Vault destroyed, and their leadership gone, they soon abandoned their mission to collect wastelanders, and became true helpers of those less fortunate. Even so, for decades, survivors of Vault 4 continued to hunt them down, unable to forgive their sins.

**The Brotherhood of Steel, **led by Kuchiki Rukia, and aided by Kurotsuchi Nemu, continued its mission of recovering dangerous technology, tucking it away where it could not hurt anybody. The 13th Division became the protectors of the New Rukongai, and the Hub, which soon was known as New Seireitei.

The other half of the Brotherhood, the 6th Division led by Kuchiki Byakuya, moved West, where the surviving super-mutants had started to migrate to. It was rumoured that an incredible piece of technology, too dangerous to fall into the wrong hands, had been discovered far west.

Its name: Project Purity.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's notes: <strong>And there you have it folks, The End™. What a journey this has been! It was so much fun to put together the Bleach and Fallout universes, and so many challenges too! Did I do okay? I don't know, some things I'm very happy with, others maybe not so much.

There's always some nagging doubts about how I have answered the big questions. Kurotsuchi being the bad guy, I think, fit well enough – he is a freaking psycho! Him having started the nuclear war, and becoming obsessed with nuclear power, seemed okay. Yemon burning out his inner hollow to defeat Kurotsuchi? Seemed like a nice twist.

One thing about how I write, which I believe I have mentioned before, is that I don't necessarily know which way the plot is going to go. Not that I make it up on the spot, but usually I have a few possibilities in my head, and hope that the characters tell me how to go about it. Here's some of the dilemmas I went through, as well as some random notes:

- Tatsuki and the super-mutants. Yep, I nearly killed her, as it was supposed to be Yemon's adventure. Not that I was singling her out, a lot of characters have died in this fic. But I didn't know yet just how much she was going to take over the adventure.

- The Boneyard. I actually _didn't _know whether Yemon was going to survive or not. Tatsuki didn't let him die, but the other option, which repeatedly came up every time Yemon got in over his head, was to have Tatsuki finish the quest. And why not? She'd have made an excellent main character, the only reason she wasn't the main character since the beginning was what I explained in the Prologue: An OC, one who didn't know about the outside world, was the best way I could envision the Hero's Journey of coming out of the Vault.

- The Kenpachi vs. Aizen fight. Again, I wasn't sure how this fight was going to go. One of the things I have kept in the back of my mind was Yemon's powers. He started off as a Quincy, and I considered for a while whether I'd give him Shinigami powers too. This was ages ago, before the Quincy war stuff was introduced in the manga, and in retrospective, I'm happy I went this way. Point being, Kenpachi giving Yemon his shinigami powers before dying was actually a possibility (would mirror nicely what happened between Rukia and Ichigo, only with an ax crazy shinigami – more fitting for a post-apocalyptic wasteland adventure). And yes, that fight was when I realized how much of a badass Yachiru was.

- The Café of Broken Dreams: That was very difficult to write, and I still think I should go back and review it. I gave Aizen's Zanpakutō to Harribel, because I wanted it to be a chance to have a bit of character growth. Tatsuki facing Aizen somewhat "safely", Yachiru fighting Kenpachi, and Yemon just getting to grips with his own fears. Problem is, once Yachiru turned out to be so strong, there was only one way the fight could go. I had her use the same strategy Kenpachi used vs. Tousen, and Yamamoto vs. Aizen, while under the influence of their bankai/complete hypnosis respectively. I also added a twist to the complete hypnosis, with Harribel being able to bring out memories from the hypnotized victims.

- The Mysterious Stranger: Have you guessed who it is yet? Hint: Appeared right after visiting Urahara's personal Vault. Kicks crazy strong. Has blue eyes – which Tatsuki saw when she woke up in Urahara's Vault, only she thought it was a dream. The answer: Ururu! More to the point, Ururu was the only one in Urahara's Vault. Jinta took the hard drives with the schematics of Vault 14 and whatnot to take it to Vault 14, but never made it there. Or back. I'm also assuming she's a mod soul (common hypothesis), so she could be alive and kicking (heh) 100 years later.

- Karin: I strongly hinted at it at the very start, when she gave Yemon the Quincy symbol. It was to be the reason why Yemon had Quincy powers (and when the Manga finally explained everything about Masaki, I felt even more vindicated!). Karin had a child with Ishida. I came out and explained it right at the end, that they were outside the vault, stayed out for years, and when they went in (forced by the nukes – Karin was too young to be thinking about that during the time of the shinigami war, and her refusing to leave for the Vault waiting for Ichigo to come back seemed plausible), Ishida didn't make it – and Karin only made it because Ishida broke her spiritual powers to turn her into a plain human. Years on, the human-spirit transformation was a lot faster, so Yemon couldn't go back in. Well, maybe he could shoot himself in the right spots with his bow, as Quincies can make arrows change direction and all that, but hey, it's not like he was alone out there. It became part of his choice. Also, being a Kurosaki, Yemon _has_ dormant spiritual powers, that's why he has a strong reiatsu despite being a Quincy (Quincies absorb spirit particles, so they don't "emit" reiatsu).

Yuzu? She didn't make it. Sorry.

- Speaking of Aizen. Several things here. First, you may have noticed how I was very specific about him being two humans (real, living humans with some spiritual energy, not souls, shinigami, hollows, or anything else) short of properly completing the King's Key – which lead to his failure and the collapse of the three worlds. It's a bit of a stretch (rather, a massive one, but hey, I'm taking a lot of liberties here). The idea was that the battle was extremely close, and Aizen had calculated it very precisely. But two people escaped. Have you guessed who yet? Answer: Karin and Tatsuki. Technically, Ishida escaped too, but he was in Hueco Mundo (came back during the fight and went off to rescue the Kurosaki sisters, though he only managed to save Karin), so he wasn't in Aizen's initial calculations.. Ururu survived as well, but doesn't count, as she is a mod soul (well, presumed, not sure what the current theory is on that one).

Also, he did get rid of his Zanpakutō, which Harribel found and adopted. In the manga it broke down when he lost to Ichigo, so eh, why not. He never managed to complete the ritual to become the new King, because he was two souls short – and couldn't leave far to go hunting for more (didn't said that explicitly anywhere, didn't have a good spot to explain it, unless I had Aizen monologuing incessantly). Karakura was the center of the deadzone, so not many humans ever wandered there, much less after Kurotsuchi nuked it.

- Tatsuki again: Tatsuki nearly took over the whole adventure more than a few times. I _almost_ gave her Shunkō, something that seems to be popular in several fics – and I can see why! At any point, having her finish Yemon's mission was a possibility. Heck, I almost let Yemon get killed in Vault 12 so that Tatsuki could discover him and finish the mission. In the end, I went for her having Orihime's hairclips, and getting the powers at the dramatically appropriate moment – and since they're part of Orihime's soul, realizing that Orihime was still with her. Considering that I initially didn't have big plans for her, it's quite impressive. Good show Tatsuki!

And by the way, she subconsciously used her powers to heal Yemon back when they were at the Hub for the second time, and they got drunk together. That's why she was so tired the morning after, and Yemon was fine. If you spotted it, well done! May have been a bit too obscure a foreshadowing moment.

- The Shinigami survivors: Something that may be obvious enough now. Who survived the battle with Aizen? Simple: _those who weren't there!_ I had Rukia, Mayuri, Nemu, Isane, Nanao... Once I did the maths, I realized there were actually quite a few survivors. Notable exceptions were Ōmaeda, since I assumed he'd run away like the coward he is and survive, and Lisa. I didn't explain it fully, but I've strongly hinted to what happened to her: Got badly wounded, and Kyōraku saved her. There's also people missing (Byakuya and Renji being the most prominent). Well, I had to save something for the sequel :)

- Dogmeat: What can I say? Dogmeat is the best sidekick in history. I put him above HK-47. There, I said it. There's something adorable about how a simple iguana on a stick can win you the loyalty of the poor little mutt forever, up to and including throwing himself at minigun-wielding, eight-feet tall super-mutants.

If I ever get a dog, he _will_ be called Dogmeat.

- Yachiru: Once she "broke the seal", she became a bit too powerful to make for interesting battles. Hence her aloofness, and why I didn't even bother writing her fight with Nemu. Not much to see, other than Nemu getting her butt kicked. Only she didn't die, because she's Yachiru's buddy – and she gave her a reiatsu seal, like the eyepatch Kenpachi used to wear.

Speaking of the eyepatch, it ended up eating away at Kenpachi's face – prolonged exposure isn't good for you! So in one fight, and weakened by the eyepatch, Kenpachi ended up damaging the Soul Sleep, which I took it to mean he couldn't regenerate his spiritual power anymore. Yeah, he fought without recovering for decades and still kicked butt. He's that much of a badass.

- Sequel? Maybe, I do have an idea sketched out. It starts with Vault 101, and a very special girl struggling with the idea of her mother being dead. But wait! Does that mean there are more than 14 Vaults? Yes, yes it does, and they came to be when-[BZZZZZT].

But so much to write, so little time...

- Last but not least, you: Thank you for reading, commenting, following, and putting my fic on alert! And special thanks to our full story reviewer, Blackout1170 :)


End file.
